Optical properties of barium borate crystal in the THz range revisited.

Low-temperature phase (β-form) barium borate (BBO) is one of the most important nonlinear crystals that has been widely used for optical second-harmonic generation (SHG), especially with femtosecond sources. There was growing interest in its applications in the direct generation of terahertz (THz) radiations, but it was hindered by the lack of knowledge of its basic properties in the THz range. In a recent study based on first-principles quantum chemistry calculation, we found that the theoretically calculated refractive indices of β-BBO in the THz frequency range do not agree with the previously reported values.

Ketogenic Diets Alter the Gut Microbiome, Resulting in Decreased Susceptibility to and Cognitive Impairment in Rats with Pilocarpine-Induced Status Epilepticus.

A ketogenic diet (KD) is a high-fat, low-carbohydrate, and low-protein diet that exerts antiepileptic effects by attenuating spontaneous recurrent seizures, ameliorating learning and memory impairments, and modulating the gut microbiota composition. However, the role of the gut microbiome in the antiepileptic effects of a KD on temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) induced by lithium-pilocarpine in adult rats is still unknown. Our study provides evidence demonstrating that a KD effectively mitigates seizure behavior and reduces acute-phase epileptic brain activity and that KD treatment alleviates hippocampal neuronal damage and improves cognitive impairment induced by TLE.

InSAR and machine learning reveal new understanding of coastal subsidence risk in the Yellow River Delta, China.

Coastal subsidence is a geological disaster that has devastating consequences. However, an accurate understanding of its risks involves more than simply assessing the amount or rate of land subsidence. The existing methods used to evaluate geological disaster risks depend on extensive data collection, entail substantial workloads, suffer from error estimation challenges, and lack regional adaptability.

Terahertz spectroscopic detection of amino acid molecules under magnetic field.

Terahertz (THz) waves can cover the characteristic spectra of substances such as plasma, organisms, and biomolecules, whereas THz photons have low energy and do not damage biological tissues. Therefore, its absorption characteristics in the THz region can be used to characterize the internal structure of biomolecules. In this study, we designed a microfluidic chip and combined it with THz technology.

Terahertz spectral properties of glucose and two disaccharides in solid and liquid states.

The vibrational and rotational frequencies of most biological macromolecules fall within the terahertz (THz) band; therefore, the THz wave has a strong ability to distinguish substances. Saccharides are important organic substances and the main source of life-sustaining activities. In this study, the spectral characteristics of D-glucose, α-lactose hydrate, and β-maltose hydrate were measured in the solid state through THz time-domain spectroscopy in the frequency range of 0.

Chronic bronchitis is associated with severe exacerbation and prolonged recovery period in Chinese patients with COPD: a multicenter cross-sectional study.

Background: Chronic bronchitis (CB) is closely associated with the frequency and severity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation. However, little is known about the impact of CB on COPD exacerbations, severe and non-severe, and on recovery from an exacerbation.

Methods: We conducted a nation-wide multicenter cross-sectional survey in China between September 2007 and December 2008.

[Present status of medical treatment for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease based upon different severity classifications].

Objective: To survey the present status of medical treatment for Chinese outpatients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) based upon the guidelines for diagnosing and treating COPD (2007 Revised Edition and 2013 Revised Edition) and explore the impact of new guideline on treatment regimens.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted at 11 participating hospitals. Stable COPD patients were consecutively recruited from outpatient clinics in China between September 2007 and December 2008 and categorized into the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) I-IV classification and A-D groups according to the Chinese guidelines for diagnosing and treating COPD (2007 Revised Edition and 2013 Revised Edition).

A Filifactor alocis-centered co-occurrence group associates with periodontitis across different oral habitats.

Periodontitis is a highly prevalent polymicrobial disease worldwide, yet the synergistic pattern of the multiple oral pathogens involved is still poorly characterized. Here, saliva, supragingival and subgingival plaque samples from periodontitis patients and periodontally healthy volunteers were collected and profiled with 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing. Different oral habitats harbored significantly different microbiota, and segregation of microbiota composition between periodontitis and health was observed as well.

A phylo-functional core of gut microbiota in healthy young Chinese cohorts across lifestyles, geography and ethnicities.

Structural profiling of healthy human gut microbiota across heterogeneous populations is necessary for benchmarking and characterizing the potential ecosystem services provided by particular gut symbionts for maintaining the health of their hosts. Here we performed a large structural survey of fecal microbiota in 314 healthy young adults, covering 20 rural and urban cohorts from 7 ethnic groups living in 9 provinces throughout China. Canonical analysis of unweighted UniFrac principal coordinates clustered the subjects mainly by their ethnicities/geography and less so by lifestyles.

IL-22 deficiency alters colonic microbiota to be transmissible and colitogenic.

IL-22 is a good candidate to play a critical role in regulating gut microbiota because it is an important inducer of antimicrobial peptides and mucins in the gut. However, whether IL-22 participates in immune homeostasis by way of modulating gut microbiota remains to be elucidated. In this study, we find, through 16S rRNA gene-pyrosequencing analysis, that healthy IL-22-deficient mice had altered colonic microbiota, notably with decreased abundance of some genera, including Lactobacillus, and increased levels of others.

[Attitudes and actions of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients on treatment:a national multi-center investigative study].

Objective: To investigate the attitudes and actions of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) on treatment.

Methods: A nation-wide multi-center, questionnaire study was carried out to investigate the patient understanding and experience of COPD treatment between Sep. 2007 and Dec.

[Study on drug-resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolated from coal workers with silico-tuberculosis].

Objective: To study the gene mutation and streptomycin, isoniazid or rifampicin resistance of Mycobacterium isolated from silico-tuberculosis patient's sputum so as to find a more effective therapy for this disease.

Methods: Mycobacteria tuberculosis were separated from 96 coal worker with silico-tuberculosis firstly. Then rpsL, KatG and rpoB fragments of genome were copied with PCR and compared their SSCP profiles with standard strains.