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The emotion regulation network (ERN) in the brain provides a framework for understanding the neuropathology of affective disorders. Although previous neuroimaging studies have investigated the neurobiological correlates of the ERN in major depressive disorder (MDD), whether patients with MDD exhibit abnormal functional connectivity (FC) patterns in the ERN and whether the abnormal FC in the ERN can serve as a therapeutic response signature remain unclear.
Methods
A large functional magnetic resonance imaging dataset comprising 709 patients with MDD and 725 healthy controls (HCs) recruited across five sites was analyzed. Using a seed-based FC approach, we first investigated the group differences in whole-brain resting-state FC of the 14 ERN seeds between participants with and without MDD. Furthermore, an independent sample (45 MDD patients) was used to evaluate the relationship between the aforementioned abnormal FC in the ERN and symptom improvement after 8 weeks of antidepressant monotherapy.
Results
Compared to the HCs, patients with MDD exhibited aberrant FC between 7 ERN seeds and several cortical and subcortical areas, including the bilateral middle temporal gyrus, bilateral occipital gyrus, right thalamus, calcarine cortex, middle frontal gyrus, and the bilateral superior temporal gyrus. In an independent sample, these aberrant FCs in the ERN were negatively correlated with the reduction rate of the HAMD17 score among MDD patients.
Conclusions
These results might extend our understanding of the neurobiological underpinnings underlying unadaptable or inflexible emotional processing in MDD patients and help to elucidate the mechanisms of therapeutic response.
Microorganisms symbiotic with insects, whether permanently or temporarily, play a crucial role in the nutrition, development, reproduction, defence, and metamorphosis regulation. In some Lepidoptera, oviposition-deterrent pheromones (ODPs) on egg surface were used by pregnant females to modify the behaviour of conspecifics to avoid excessive competition for limited resources. In this study, we constructed four different Spodoptera litura groups, including, OH, OA, SH, and OA, which either feed on different hosts or grow in different environments. The 16S rDNA libraries of microbes from the egg surface of the four groups were constructed and sequenced. According to alpha and beta diversity indices, the microbes in environments and diets considerably influenced the richness, diversity, and community compositions of the microbiota on egg surfaces. The quantity of the main ODP components and the corresponding oviposition-deterrent activity among four groups were significantly differed among the four groups. The result of this study revealed that altering of microbes in environments or diets considerably changed the contents of ODP and oviposition-deterrent activity. As ODPs impart oviposition-deterrent activity towards closely related species, the findings of this study suggest that we should pay more attention to the role of symbiotic microorganisms in changing the ability of insects, especially sympatric species, to occupy the optimal niche when developing novel pest-control strategies.
In this paper, we consider a delayed discrete single population patch model in advective environments. The individuals are subject to both random and directed movements, and there is a net loss of individuals at the downstream end due to the flow into a lake. Choosing time delay as a bifurcation parameter, we show the existence of Hopf bifurcations for the model. In homogeneous non-advective environments, it is well known that the first Hopf bifurcation value is independent of the dispersal rate. In contrast, for homogeneous advective environments, the first Hopf bifurcation value depends on the dispersal rate. Moreover, we show that the first Hopf bifurcation value in advective environments is larger than that in non-advective environments if the dispersal rate is large or small, which suggests that directed movements of the individuals inhibit the occurrence of Hopf bifurcations.
The AIMTB rapid test assay is an emerging test, which adopted a fluorescence immunochromatographic assay to measure interferon-γ (IFN-γ) production following stimulation of effector memory T cells in whole blood by mycobacterial proteins. The aim of this article was to explore the ability of AIMTB rapid test assay in detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection compared with the widely applied QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus) test among rural doctors in China. In total, 511 participants were included in the survey. The concordance between the QFT-Plus test and the AIMTB rapid test assay was 94.47% with a Cohen’s kappa coefficient (κ) of 0.84 (95% CI, 0.79–0.90). Improved concordance between the two tests was observed in males and in participants with 26 or more years of service as rural doctors. The quantitative values of the QFT-Plus test was higher in individuals with a result of QFT-Plus-/AIMTB+ as compared to those with a result of QFT-Plus-/AIMTB- (p < 0.001). Overall, our study found that there was an excellent consistency between the AIMTB rapid test assay and the QFT-Plus test in a Chinese population. As the AIMTB rapid test assay is fast and easy to operate, it has the potential to improve latent tuberculosis infection testing and treatment at the community level in resource-limited settings.
Previous studies suggest a link between vitamin D status and COVID-19 susceptibility in hospitalised patients. This study aimed to investigate whether vitamin D concentrations in elderly individuals were associated with their susceptibility to Omicron COVID-19 incidence, the severity of the disease and the likelihood of reoccurrence during the era of the post-‘zero-COVID-19’ policies in China.
Design:
In this retrospective study, participants were categorised into three groups based on their 25(OH)D concentrations: deficiency (< 20 ng/ml), insufficiency (20 to < 30 ng/ml) and sufficiency (≥ 30 ng/ml). The demographic and clinical characteristics, comorbidities and the incidence rate, reoccurrence rate and severity of Omicron COVID-19 were retrospectively recorded and analysed by using hospital information system data and an online questionnaire survey.
Setting:
China.
Participants:
222 participants aged 60 years or older from a health management centre.
Results:
Our findings revealed significant differences in the incidence (P = 0·03) and recurrent rate (P = 0·02) of Omicron COVID-19 among the three groups. Participants with lower 25(OH)D concentrations (< 20 ng/ml) exhibited higher rates of initial incidence and reoccurrence and a greater percentage of severe and critical cases. Conversely, individuals with 25(OH)D concentrations ≥ 30 ng/ml had a higher percentage of mild cases (P = 0·003). Binary and ordinal logistic regression models indicated that vitamin D supplementation was not a significant risk factor for COVID-19 outcomes.
Conclusions:
In the elderly population, pre-infection vitamin D deficiency was associated with increased susceptibility to incidence, severity of illness and reoccurrence rates of Omicron COVID-19.
Preserved ratio impaired spirometry (PRISm) is a new lung function impairment phenotype and has been recognized as a risk factor for various adverse outcomes. We aimed to examine the associations of this new lung function impairment phenotype with depression and anxiety in longitudinal studies.
Methods
We included 369 597 participants from the UK Biobank cohort, and divided them into population 1 without depression or anxiety and population 2 with depression or anxiety at baseline. Cox proportional hazard models were performed to evaluate the associations of lung function impairment phenotype with adverse outcomes of depression and anxiety, as well as their subtypes.
Results
At baseline, 38 879 (10.5%) participants were diagnosed with PRISm. In population 1, the adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for PRISm (v. normal spirometry) were 1.12 (95% CI 1.07–1.18) for incident depression, and 1.11 (95% CI 1.06–1.15) for incident anxiety, respectively. In population 2, PRISm was a risk factor for mortality in participants with depression (HR: 1.46; 95% CI 1.31–1.62) and anxiety (HR: 1.70; 95% CI 1.44–2.02), compared with normal spirometry. The magnitudes of these associations were similar in the phenotypes of lung function impairment and the subtypes of mental disorders. Trajectory analysis showed that the transition from normal spirometry to PRISm was associated with a higher risk of mortality in participants with depression and anxiety.
Conclusions
PRISm and airflow obstruction have similar risks of depression and anxiety. PRISm recognition may contribute to the prevention of depression and anxiety.
As a required sample preparation method for 14C graphite, the Zn-Fe reduction method has been widely used in various laboratories. However, there is still insufficient research to improve the efficiency of graphite synthesis, reduce modern carbon contamination, and test other condition methodologies at Guangxi Normal University (GXNU). In this work, the experimental parameters, such as the reduction temperature, reaction time, reagent dose, Fe powder pretreatment, and other factors, in the Zn-Fe flame sealing reduction method for 14C graphite samples were explored and determined. The background induced by the sample preparation process was (2.06 ± 0.55) × 10–15, while the 12C– beam current were better than 40μA. The results provide essential instructions for preparing 14C graphite of ∼1 mg at the GXNU lab and technical support for the development of 14C dating and tracing, contributing to biology and environmental science.
A new vacuum line to extract CO2 from carbonate and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in water was established at Guangxi Normal University. The vacuum line consisted of two main components: a CO2 bubble circulation region and a CO2 purification collection region, both of which were made of quartz glass and metal pipelines. To validate its reliability, a series of carbonate samples were prepared using this system. The total recovery rate of CO2 extraction and graphitization exceeded 80%. Furthermore, the carbon content in calcium carbonate exhibited a linear relationship with the CO2 pressure within the system, demonstrating its stability and reliability. The system was also employed to prepare and analyze various samples, including calcium carbonate blanks, foraminiferal, shell, groundwater, and subsurface oil-water samples. The accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) results indicated that the average beam current for 12C- in the samples exceeded 40 μA. Additionally, the contamination introduced during the liquid sample preparation process was approximately (1.77 ± 0.57) × 10−14. Overall, the graphitized preparation system for carbonate and DIC in water exhibited high efficiency and recovery, meeting the requirements for samples dating back to approximately 30,000 years.
As a member of the Scathophagidae family, Scathophaga stercoraria (S. stercoraria) is widely distributed globally and is closely associated with animal feces. It is also a species of great interest to many scientific studies. However, its phylogenetic relationships are poorly understood. In this study, S. stercoraria was found in plateau pikas for the first time. The potential cause of its presence in the plateau pikas was discussed and it was speculated that the presence of S. stercoraria was related to the yak feces. In addition, 2 nuclear genes (18SrDNA and 28SrDNA), 1 mitochondrial gene (COI), and the complete mitochondrial genome of S. stercoraria were sequenced. Phylogenetic trees constructed based on 13 Protein coding genes (13PCGs), 18S and 28S rDNA showed that S. stercoraria is closely related to the Calliphoridae family; phylogenetic results based on COI suggest that within the family Scathophagidae, S. stercoraria is more closely related to the genus Leptopa, Micropselapha, Parallelomma and Americina. Divergence times estimated using the COI gene suggest that the divergence formation of the genus Scathophaga is closely related to changes in biogeographic scenarios and potentially driven by a combination of uplift of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) and dramatic climate changes. These results provide valuable information for further studies on the phylogeny and differentiation of the Scathophaga genus in the future.
The absorption and distribution of radiocarbon-labeled urea at the ultratrace level were investigated with a 14C-AMS biotracer method. The radiopharmaceutical concentrations in the plasma, heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, stomach, brain, bladder, muscle, testis, and fat of rats after oral administration of 14C urea at ultratrace doses were determined by AMS, and the concentration-time curves in plasma and tissues and pharmacokinetic distribution data were obtained. This study provides an analytical method for the pharmacokinetic parameters and tissue distribution of exogenous urea in rats at ultratrace doses and explores the feasibility of evaluation and long-term tracking of ultratrace doses of drugs with AMS.
A lattice Boltzmann method is used to explore the effect of surfactants on the unequal volume breakup of a droplet in a T-junction microchannel, and the asymmetry due to fabrication defects in real-life microchannels is modelled as the pressure difference between the two branch outlets ($\Delta {P^\ast }$). We first study the effect of the surfactants on the droplet dynamics at different dimensionless initial droplet lengths ($l_0^\ast $) and capillary numbers (Ca) under symmetric boundary conditions ($\Delta {P^\ast } = 0$). The results indicate that the presence of surfactants promotes droplet deformation and breakup at small and moderate $l_0^\ast $ values, while the surfactant effect is weakened at large $l_0^\ast $ values. When the branch channels are completely blocked by the droplet, a linear relationship is observed between the dimensionless droplet length ($l_d^\ast $) and dimensionless time (${t^\ast }$), and two formulas are proposed for predicting the evolution of $l_d^\ast $ with ${t^\ast }$ for the two systems. We then investigate the effect of the surfactants on the droplet breakup at different values of $\Delta {P^\ast }$ and bulk surfactant concentrations (${\psi _b}$) under asymmetric boundary conditions ($\Delta {P^\ast } \ne 0$). It is observed that, as $\Delta {P^\ast }$ increases, the volume ratio of the generated droplets (${V_1}/{V_2}$) decreases to 0 in both systems, while the rate of decrease is higher in the clean system, i.e. the presence of surfactants could cause a decreased pressure difference between the droplet tips. As ${\psi _b}$ increases, ${V_1}/{V_2}$ first increases rapidly, then remains almost constant and finally decreases slightly. We thus establish a phase diagram that describes the ${V_1}/{V_2}$ variation with $\Delta {P^\ast }$ and ${\psi _b}$.
The assessment of seed quality and physiological potential is essential in seed production and crop breeding. In the process of rapid detection of seed viability using tetrazolium (TZ) staining, it is necessary to spend a lot of labour and material resources to explore the pretreatment and staining methods of hard and solid seeds with physical barriers. This study explores the TZ staining methods of six hard seeds (Tilia miqueliana, Tilia henryana, Sassafras tzumu, Prunus subhirtella, Prunus sibirica, and Juglans mandshurica) and summarizes the TZ staining conditions required for hard seeds by combining the difference in fat content between seeds and the kinship between species, thus providing a rapid viability test method for the protection of germplasm resources of endangered plants and the optimization of seed bank construction. The TZ staining of six species of hard seeds requires a staining temperature above 35 °C and a TZ solution concentration higher than 1%. Endospermic seeds require shorter staining times than exalbuminous seeds. The higher the fat content of the seeds, the lower the required incubation temperature and TZ concentration for staining, and the longer the staining time. And the closer the relationship between the two species, the more similar their staining conditions become. The TZ staining method of similar species can be predicted according to the genetic distance between the phylogenetic trees, and the viability of new species can be detected quickly.
Accurately assessing the self-efficacy levels of palliative care professionals’ is crucial, as low levels of self-efficacy may contribute to the suboptimal provision of palliative care. However, there is currently lacking a reliable and valid instrument for evaluating the self-efficacy of palliative care practitioners in China. Therefore, this study aimed to translate, adapt, and validate the Palliative Care Self-Efficacy Scale (PCSS) among Chinese palliative care professionals.
Methods
This study involved the translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the PCSS, and the evaluation of its psychometric properties through testing for homogeneity, content validity, construct validity, known-groups validity, and reliability.
Results
A total of 493 palliative care professionals participated in this study. The results showed the critical ratio value of each item was >3 (p < 0.01), and the corrected item-total correlation coefficients of all items ranged from 0.733 to 0.818, indicating a good homogeneity of the items with the scale. Additionally, the scale was shown to have good validity, with item-level content validity index ranged from 0.857 to 1.000, and scale-level content validity index/Ave was 0.956. The exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) confirmed the 2-factor structure of the Chinese version of PCSS (C-PCSS), explaining 74.19% of the variance. CFA verified that the 2-factor model had a satisfactory model fit, with χ2/df = 2.724, RMSEA = 0.084, GFI = 0.916, CFI = 0.967, and TLI = 0.952. The known-groups validity of C-PCSS was demonstrated good with its sensitive in differentiating levels of self-efficacy between professionals with less than 1 year of palliative care experience (p < 0.001) or without palliative care training (p = 0.014) and their counterparts. Furthermore, the C-PCSS also exhibited an excellent internal consistency, with the Cronbach’s α for the total scale of 0.943.
Significance of results
The findings from this study affirmed good validity and reliability of the C-PCSS. It can be emerged as a valuable and reliable instrument for assessing the self-efficacy levels of palliative care professionals in China.
Growing evidence points to the pivotal role of vitamin D in the pathophysiology and treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD). However, there is a paucity of longitudinal research investigating the effects of vitamin D supplementation on the brain of MDD patients.
Methods
We conducted a double-blind randomized controlled trial in 46 MDD patients, who were randomly allocated into either VD (antidepressant medication + vitamin D supplementation) or NVD (antidepressant medication + placebos) groups. Data from diffusion tensor imaging, resting-state functional MRI, serum vitamin D concentration, and clinical symptoms were obtained at baseline and after an average of 7 months of intervention.
Results
Both VD and NVD groups showed significant improvement in depression and anxiety symptoms but with no significant differences between the two groups. However, a greater increase in serum vitamin D concentration was found to be associated with greater improvement in depression and anxiety symptoms in VD group. More importantly, neuroimaging data demonstrated disrupted white matter integrity of right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus along with decreased functional connectivity between right frontoparietal and medial visual networks after intervention in NVD group, but no changes in VD group.
Conclusions
These findings suggest that vitamin D supplementation as adjunctive therapy to antidepressants may not only contribute to improvement in clinical symptoms but also help preserve brain structural and functional connectivity in MDD patients.
Data on epidemiology trends of paediatric tuberculosis (TB) are limited in China. So, we investigated the clinical and epidemiological profiles in diagnosed TB disease and TB infection patients at Beijing Children’s Hospital. Of 3 193 patients, 51.05% had pulmonary TB (PTB) and 15.16% had extrapulmonary TB (EPTB). The most frequent forms of EPTB were TB meningitis (39.05%), pleural TB (29.75%), and disseminated TB (10.33%). PTB patients were significantly younger and associated with higher hospitalization frequency. Children aged 1–4 years exhibited higher risk of PTB and TB meningitis, and children aged 5–12 years had higher risk of EPTB. The proportion of PTB patients increased slightly from 40.9% in 2012 to 65% in 2019, and then decreased to 17.8% in 2021. The percentage of EPTB cases decreased from 18.3% in 2012 to 15.2% in 2019, but increased to 16.4% in 2021. Among EPTB cases, the largest increase was seen in TB meningitis. In conclusion, female and young children had higher risk of PTB in children. TB meningitis was the most frequent forms of EPTB among children, and young children were at high risk of TB meningitis. The distribution of different types of EPTB differed by age.
COVID-19 carriers experience psychological stresses and mental health issues such as varying degrees of stigma. The Social Impact Scale (SIS) can be used to measure the stigmatisation of COVID-19 carriers who experience such problems.
Aims
To evaluate the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the SIS, and the association between stigma and depression among asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers in Shanghai, China.
Method
A total of 1283 asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers from Shanghai Ruijin Jiahe Fangcang Shelter Hospital were recruited, with a mean age of 39.64 ± 11.14 years (59.6% male). Participants completed questionnaires, including baseline information and psychological measurements, the SIS and Self-Rating Depression Scale. The psychometrics of the SIS and its association with depression were examined through exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and receiver operating characteristic analysis.
Results
The average participant SIS score was 42.66 ± 14.61 (range: 24–96) years. Analyses suggested the model had four factors: social rejection, financial insecurity, internalised shame and social isolation. The model fit statistics of the four-factor SIS were 0.913 for the comparative fit index, 0.902 for the Tucker–Lewis index and 0.088 for root-mean-square error of approximation. Standard estimated factor loadings ranged from 0.509 to 0.836. After controlling for demographic characteristics, the total score of the 23-item SIS predicted depression (odds ratio: 1.087, 95% CI 1.061–1.115; area under the curve: 0.84, 95% CI 0.788–0.892).
Conclusions
The Chinese version of the SIS showed good psychometric properties and can be used to assess the level of perceived stigma experienced by asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers.
Seven accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon (AMS 14C) dates (7260±106∼7607±95 BP averaged 7444±103 BP) on a giant oyster shell, collected from an ancient shore of the Taipei Basin, are similar to the LSC (liquid scintillation counting) 14C age (7260±46 BP) of a grass sample inside the shell. The calibrated 14C ages of the C. gigas by Marine20 are 7490±240∼7805±230 cal BP (average 7660±96 cal BP), generally agreed with the calibrated LSC 14C ages of the grass and the oyster shell. Combined with other 14C ages of shoreline samples in the Taipei Basin, it is evident that sea level rose from 8600 to 7600 cal BP and reached a stand higher than modern sea level. During this marine transgression, the sedimentation rate along the shoreline was very high because 14C dating was not able to detect age differences for 4–5 m thick sediment sequences. Sixty-nine analyses of δ18O and δ13C from the oldest part of the shell exhibit clear seasonal cycles, with a 4-year period of growth in the 5.5-cm section. According to the δ18O values, the ancient oyster grew in a warmer-than-present shoreline environment, suggesting that the current absence of the giant oyster in Taiwan is not due to warming conditions.
This study aims to gain insight into each attribute as presented in the value of implantable medical devices, quantify attributes’ strength and their relative importance, and identify the determinants of stakeholders’ preferences.
Methods
A mixed-methods design was used to identify attributes and levels reflecting stakeholders’ preference toward the value of implantable medical devices. This design combined literature reviewing, expert’s consultation, one-on-one interactions with stakeholders, and a pilot testing. Based on the design, six attributes and their levels were settled. Among 144 hypothetical profiles, 30 optimal choice sets were developed, and healthcare professionals (decision-makers, health technology assessment experts, hospital administrators, medical doctors) and patients as stakeholders in China were surveyed. A total of 134 respondents participated in the survey. Results were analyzed by mixed logit model and conditional logit model.
Results
The results of the mixed logit model showed that all the six attributes had a significant impact on respondents’ choices on implantable medical devices. Respondents were willing to pay the highest for medical devices that provided improvements in clinical safety, followed by increased clinical effectiveness, technology for treating severe diseases, improved implement capacity, and innovative technology (without substitutes).
Conclusions
The findings of DCE will improve the current evaluation on the value of implantable medical devices in China and provide decision-makers with the relative importance of the criteria in pricing and reimbursement decision-making of implantable medical devices.
In the soils of western Jilin Province in northeastern China, some significant gaps have been observed between the fraction of the soil existing as clay-size particles (<0.002 mm) and the amount attributable to crystalline clay minerals, and that the relative proportions of crystalline clay minerals to the total clay-size fraction (CP) apparently varies with latitude. The purpose of the present study was to identify the reason for this discrepancy and to explain the dependence on latitude. The grain sizes and mineral compositions of the whole soils from western Jilin Province, China, were analyzed by laser particle-size analysis (LPSA) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), and the <0.002 mm particle-size fraction was analyzed by XRD and X-ray fluorescence (XRF). The results confirmed that the percentage gaps between the clay fraction and clay minerals increased with increasing latitude. The theoretical illite percentage calculated from K2O content was compared with the illite percentage measured by XRD, and the results suggested that the measured illite accounted for only a small proportion of the theoretical illite. Structures of some special minerals below the identification threshold of XRD was suggested to be the reason for the percent gaps. The grain size and mineral crystallization both changed with latitude: the soil particle size and the CP decreased. In addition, clay minerals were more sensitive to climate than particle sizes were, and the CP of clay minerals in the soils within 0~180 cm depth all decreased with increasing latitude; however, the grain size showed patterns with latitude only in relatively shallow soil layers. The present study provides a reference and error analysis for the testing of clay minerals in alpine regions, and more suitable methods may be considered for development of clay-mineral testing in future studies.