Timing of food intake is an emerging aspect of nutrition; however, there is a lack of research accurately assessing food timing in the context of the circadian system. The study aimed to investigate the relation between food timing relative to clock time and endogenous circadian timing with adiposity and further explore sex differences in these associations among 151 young adults aged 18–25 years. Participants wore wrist actigraphy and documented sleep and food schedules in real time for 7 consecutive days. Circadian timing was determined by dim-light melatonin onset (DLMO). The duration between last eating occasion and DLMO (last EO-DLMO) was used to calculate the circadian timing of food intake. Adiposity was assessed using bioelectrical impedance analysis. Of the 151 participants, 133 were included in the statistical analysis finally. The results demonstrated that associations of adiposity with food timing relative to circadian timing rather than clock time among young adults living in real-world settings. Sex-stratified analyses revealed that associations between last EO-DLMO and adiposity were significant in females but not males. For females, each hour increase in last EO-DLMO was associated with higher BMI by 0·51 kg/m2 (P = 0·01), higher percent body fat by 1·05 % (P = 0·007), higher fat mass by 0·99 kg (P = 0·01) and higher visceral fat area by 4·75 cm2 (P = 0·02), whereas non-significant associations were present among males. The findings highlight the importance of considering the timing of food intake relative to endogenous circadian timing instead of only as clock time.

This paper retrospectively analysed the prevalence of macrolide-resistant Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MRMP) in some parts of China. Between January 2013 and December 2019, we collected 4,145 respiratory samples, including pharyngeal swabs and alveolar lavage fluid. The highest PCR-positive rate of M. pneumoniae was 74.5% in Beijing, the highest resistance rate was 100% in Shanghai, and Gansu was the lowest with 20%. The highest PCR-positive rate of M. pneumoniae was 74.5% in 2013, and the highest MRMP was 97.4% in 2019; the PCR-positive rate of M. pneumoniae for adults in Beijing was 17.9% and the MRMP was 10.48%. Among the children diagnosed with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), the PCR-positive and macrolide-resistant rates of M. pneumoniae were both higher in the severe ones. A2063G in domain V of 23S rRNA was the major macrolide-resistant mutation, accounting for more than 90%. The MIC values of all MRMP to erythromycin and azithromycin were ≥ 64 μg/ml, and the MICs of tetracycline and levofloxacin were ≤ 0.5 μg/ml and ≤ 1 μg/ml, respectively. The macrolide resistance varied in different regions and years. Among inpatients, the macrolide-resistant rate was higher in severe pneumonia. A2063G was the common mutation, and we found no resistance to tetracycline and levofloxacin.

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.

Loess is a large-scale deposit which is easy to mine and widely distributed on the epipedon. The clay fraction of loess, also known as ‘loessial clay’, is a very important component of loess which affects its properties and performance. From a ‘materials’ perspective, the clay fraction of loess has been ignored. Recently, loess particles have attracted interest because of their potential applications. The focus in the current review is on the methods of modifying loess particles and their application as functional materials. The major components of loess particles are clays, calcite, and quartz, with the clays including kaolinite, illite, montmorillonite, and chlorite. Loess has a range of particle sizes, types, and dispersibilities. The particles agglomerate readily, mainly because cementation occurs readily in the clay fraction. Loess particles can be modified and their properties can be improved by compaction, separation, purification, acidification, calcination, surfactant modification, geopolymerization, and polymer modification. Loess-based functional materials have been used as sorbents, eco-friendly superabsorbents, soil and water conservation materials, humidity-regulating materials, and building materials. Separated and purified loess particles can adsorb metal ions and harmful elements directly. Surfactant-modified loess particles can remove organic compounds effectively. After modification with polymers, loess particles exhibit greater capacity for the removal of environmental pollutants such as harmful metal ions and dyes. As a superabsorbent, modified loess shows excellent thermal stability and swelling behavior. Calcined loess could be utilized as an energy-saving building material with good humidity-regulating performance, and geological polymerization has further expanded the scope of applications of loess in architecture. In summary, loess-based functional materials, which are inexpensive and ecologically friendly, deserve more attention and further development.

The production of broadband, terawatt terahertz (THz) pulses has been demonstrated by irradiating relativistic lasers on solid targets. However, the generation of extremely powerful, narrow-band and frequency-tunable THz pulses remains a challenge. Here, we present a novel approach for such THz pulses, in which a plasma wiggler is elaborated by a table-top laser and a near-critical density plasma. In such a wiggler, the laser-accelerated electrons emit THz radiations with a period closely related to the plasma thickness. The theoretical model and numerical simulations predict that a THz pulse with a laser–THz energy conversion of over 2.0%, an ultra-strong field exceeding 80 GV/m, a divergence angle of approximately 20° and a center frequency tunable from 4.4 to 1.5 THz can be generated from a laser of 430 mJ. Furthermore, we demonstrate that this method can work across a wide range of laser and plasma parameters, offering potential for future applications with extremely powerful THz pulses.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the mental health of healthcare workers (HCWs). We aimed to identify the factors associated with depression among HCWs during the pandemic. We conducted literature search using eight electronic databases up to July 27 2022. Observational studies with more than 200 participants investigating correlates of depression in HCWs after COVID-19 outbreak were included. We used fixed- and random-effects models to pool odds ratios (ORs) across studies, and Cochran's chi-squared test and I2 statistics to assess study heterogeneity. Publication bias was evaluated by funnel plots. Thirty-five studies involving 44,362 HCWs met the inclusion criteria. Female (OR=1.50, 95% CI [1.23,1.84]), single (OR=1.36, 95% CI [1.21,1.54]), nurse (OR=1.69, 95% CI [1.28,2.25]), history of mental diseases (OR=2.53, 95% CI [1.78,3.58]), frontline (OR=1.79, 95% CI [1.38,2.32]), health anxiety due to COVID-19 (OR=1.88, 95% CI [1.29,2.76]), working in isolation wards (OR=1.98, 95% CI [1.38,2.84]), and insufficient personal protective equipment (OR=1.49, 95% CI [1.33,1.67]) were associated with increased risk of depression. Instead, HCWs with a positive professional prospect (OR=0.34, 95% CI [0.24,0.49]) were less likely to be depressed. This meta-analysis provides up-to-date evidence on the factors linked to depression among HCWs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the persistent threats posed by COVID-19, early screening is crucial for the intervention and prevention of depression in HCWs.

SARS-CoV-2 rapidly spreads among humans via social networks, with social mixing and network characteristics potentially facilitating transmission. However, limited data on topological structural features has hindered in-depth studies. Existing research is based on snapshot analyses, preventing temporal investigations of network changes. Comparing network characteristics over time offers additional insights into transmission dynamics. We examined confirmed COVID-19 patients from an eastern Chinese province, analyzing social mixing and network characteristics using transmission network topology before and after widespread interventions. Between the two time periods, the percentage of singleton networks increased from 38.9$ \% $ to 62.8$ \% $$ (p<0.001) $; the average shortest path length decreased from 1.53 to 1.14 $ (p<0.001) $; the average betweenness reduced from 0.65 to 0.11$ (p<0.001) $; the average cluster size dropped from 4.05 to 2.72 $ (p=0.004) $; and the out-degree had a slight but nonsignificant decline from 0.75 to 0.63 $ (p=0.099). $ Results show that nonpharmaceutical interventions effectively disrupted transmission networks, preventing further disease spread. Additionally, we found that the networks’ dynamic structure provided more information than solely examining infection curves after applying descriptive and agent-based modeling approaches. In summary, we investigated social mixing and network characteristics of COVID-19 patients during different pandemic stages, revealing transmission network heterogeneities.

Environment-induced epigenetics are involved in diapause regulation, but the molecular mechanism that epigenetically couples nutrient metabolism to diapause regulation remains unclear. In this study, we paid special attention to the significant differences in the level of N6-adenosine methylation (m6A) of dihydroxyacetone phosphate acyltransferase (DHAPAT) and phosphatidate phosphatase (PAP) genes in the lipid metabolism pathway of the bivoltine silkworm (Bombyx mori) strain Qiufeng developed from eggs incubated at a normal temperature (QFHT, diapause egg producer) compared to those from eggs incubated at a low temperature (QFLT, non-diapause egg producer). We knocked down DHAPAT in the pupal stage of the QFLT group, resulting in the non-diapause destined eggs becoming diapausing eggs. In the PAP knockdown group, the colour of the non-diapause destined eggs changed from light yellow to pink 3 days after oviposition, but they hatched as normal. Moreover, we validated that YTHDF3 binds to m6A-modified DHAPAT and PAP mRNAs to promote their stability and translation. These results suggest that RNA m6A methylation participates in the diapause regulation of silkworm by changing the expression levels of DHAPAT and PAP and reveal that m6A epigenetic modification can be combined with a lipid metabolism signal pathway to participate in the regulation of insect diapause traits, which provides a clearer image for exploring the physiological basis of insect diapause.

In the Late Neoarchaean, the lithosphere of the North China Craton (NCC) experienced a strong extensional event, which is of great significance for understanding the evolution of the continental crust in the Precambrian. In this study, a suite of mafic dykes from Shandong province in the northeastern NCC were investigated to determine the nature, timing and source of rift-related magma activities using zircon U–Pb data, whole-rock geochemistry and Nd–Hf isotopes. Zircon U–Pb dating of four dolerites by laser ablation – inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) yielded weighted mean 207Pb/206Pb ages in the range 2509 ± 6.1 to 2537 ± 6.2 Ma (2σ, 95 % confidence interval). The mafic dykes are classified as alkaline rocks based on their K2O + Na2O contents (6.78–7.21 wt %) and belong to the shoshonitic series according to their K2O contents (3.23–3.36 wt %). The dolerites show low concentrations of light rare earth elements ((La/Yb)N between 7.17 and 8.55), positive Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu* between 1.12 and 1.27), positive Ba, K, Pb, Sr, Eu, Dy and Lu anomalies, and depleted U, Nb, Pr, Ta, P, Nd and Ti anomalies. The dykes are characterized by low initial (87Sr/86Sr)i (∼0.6969), positive εNd(t) values (0.2–0.8) and εHf(t) values (0.5–8.6) and relatively old mean Nd and Hf model age (2.73 Ga). Collectively, the data suggest that the mafic dykes were derived from the partial melting (10–20 %) of an isotope-depleted garnet–lherzolite mantle source that was hybridized through interaction with subducted lower crustal material. The parental magmas of these dykes underwent a certain number of crustal contaminations during magma ascent. The mafic magmatism represented in the form of the dyke swarms is considered to be a response to widespread lithospheric extension which affected the NCC at c. 2.5 Ga during the Neoarchaean.

Coastal eutrophication and hypoxia remain a persistent environmental crisis despite the great efforts to reduce nutrient loading and mitigate associated environmental damages. Symptoms of this crisis have appeared to spread rapidly, reaching developing countries in Asia with emergences in Southern America and Africa. The pace of changes and the underlying drivers remain not so clear. To address the gap, we review the up-to-date status and mechanisms of eutrophication and hypoxia in global coastal oceans, upon which we examine the trajectories of changes over the 40 years or longer in six model coastal systems with varying socio-economic development statuses and different levels and histories of eutrophication. Although these coastal systems share common features of eutrophication, site-specific characteristics are also substantial, depending on the regional environmental setting and level of social-economic development along with policy implementation and management. Nevertheless, ecosystem recovery generally needs greater reduction in pressures compared to that initiated degradation and becomes less feasible to achieve past norms with a longer time anthropogenic pressures on the ecosystems. While the qualitative causality between drivers and consequences is well established, quantitative attribution of these drivers to eutrophication and hypoxia remains difficult especially when we consider the social economic drivers because the changes in coastal ecosystems are subject to multiple influences and the cause–effect relationship is often non-linear. Such relationships are further complicated by climate changes that have been accelerating over the past few decades. The knowledge gaps that limit our quantitative and mechanistic understanding of the human-coastal ocean nexus are identified, which is essential for science-based policy making. Recognizing lessons from past management practices, we advocate for a better, more efficient indexing system of coastal eutrophication and an advanced regional earth system modeling framework with optimal modules of human dimensions to facilitate the development and evaluation of effective policy and restoration actions.

Visitors to zoos are a source of potential stress to certain captive-housed animals. Much research has focused on Europe and America, whereas the effect of human audiences on the behaviour of captive animals in Chinese parks has so far not been investigated. Sika deer (Cervus nippon) housed in Zhu-Yu-Wan Park, Yangzhou City, Jiangsu Province, China, were studied to determine the effect of different visitor density levels on the animals’ activity. From June 21 to December 10, 2006, and again from February 21 to July 10, 2007, 21 subjects were observed for 10 h per week for a total of 44 weeks. Continuous focal animal sampling was used to quantify behaviours, and visitor density was recorded every minute. Friedman's tests were used to examine the effects of visitor density on the behaviour of sika deer. Results showed that high visitor density was significantly related to foraging, resting, watching and ‘non-visible’ behaviours. The findings demonstrate that high numbers of visitors have an effect on the welfare of sika deer.

An experimental investigation of the stereocamera's systematic error is carried out to optimize three-dimensional (3-D) dust observation on the HL-2A tokamak. It is found that a larger 3-D region occupied by all calibration points is able to reduce the 3-D reconstruction systematic error of the stereocamera. In addition, the 3-D reconstruction is the most accurate around the region where the calibration points are located. Based on these experimental results, the design of the stereocamera on the HL-2A tokamak is presented, and a set of practical procedures to optimize the 3-D reconstruction accuracy of the stereocamera are proposed.

Lower-crust-derived adakitic rocks in the Gangdese belt provide important constraints on the timing of Tibetan crustal thickening and on the relative contributions of magmatic and tectonic processes. Here we present geochronological and geochemical data for the Wangdui porphyritic monzogranites in the western Gangdese belt. Zircon U–Pb dating yields emplacement ages of 46–44 Ma. All samples have high Sr (321–599 ppm), low Yb (0.76–1.33 ppm) and Y (10.6–18.3 ppm) contents, with high La/Yb (51.1–72.3) and Sr/Y (21.0–51.4) ratios, indicating adakitic affinities. The low MgO (0.97–1.76 wt %), Cr (7.49–53.6 ppm) and Ni (4.75–29.1 ppm) contents, as well as high 87Sr/86Sr(i) (0.7143–0.7145), low ϵNd(t) (−10.4 to −9.8) and zircon ϵHf(t) (−17.7 to 0.4) values, suggest that the Wangdui pluton most likely originated from partial melting of the thickened ancient lower crust. In combination with previously published data, despite the east–west-trending heterogeneity of crustal composition in the Gangdese belt, the La/Yb ratios of magmatic rocks reveal that both western and eastern segments experienced remarkable crustal thickening in the Eocene. However, in contrast to the thickened juvenile lower crust in the eastern segment formed by the underplating of mantle-derived magmas, tectonic shortening plays a more crucial role in thickening of the ancient basement in western Gangdese. In fact, such Eocene-thickened ancient lower-crust-derived adakitic rocks are widely distributed in the central Himalayan–Tibetan orogen. This, together with the extensive development of fold–thrust belts, suggests that tectonic shortening might be the main mechanism accounting for the crustal thickening associated with the India–Asia collision.