Publications by authors named "Ping Ni"

Background: Cognitive decline is a significant public health problem worldwide, but little is known about social engagement's impact on cognitive changes over time. This study aimed to explore the relationship between social engagement decline and cognitive function change in Chinese adults, and to analyze the effect of changes in depressive symptoms on this relationship.

Methods: Participants were selected from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study.

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Background: Effective communication about cancer prognosis is imperative for enhancing the quality of end-of-life care and improving patient well-being. This practice is sensitive and is heavily influenced by cultural values, beliefs, and norms, which can lead to ethical dilemmas. Despite their significance, ethical challenges in nursing related to prognosis communication are understudied in China.

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Backgroud: Neoadjuvant therapy followed by surgery has been proved to improve the survival of patients with ESCC, and neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) is the standard of care in most areas of the world. However, multimodality therapy including radiation therapy is actually limited in the current treatment of esophageal cancer in Tibet. The role of neoadjuvant immunotherapy in resectable esophageal cancer has been assessed in multiple phase II clinical trials, but there's lack of evidence of applying neoadjuvant immunotherapy plus chemotherapy in Tibetan residents.

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Article Synopsis
  • Genomic selection (GS) in aquatic animal breeding is gaining traction for its improved accuracy and speed over traditional pedigree methods, with artificial intelligence (AI) playing a key role.
  • Deep learning (DL) techniques, such as deep neural networks (DNNs) and convolutional neural networks (CNNs), are being utilized to enhance phenotyping, genotyping, and genomic estimated breeding value (GEBV) predictions.
  • The article suggests that as DL technology advances, it will likely be applied to a wider range of aquaculture species in molecular breeding efforts.
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Background: As a potential model organism for studies of environmental and cell biology, Paramecium duboscqui is a special euryhaline species of Paramecium that can be found in fresh, brackish, or marine water in natural salinity ranges between 0‰ and 33‰. However, the genome information as well as molecular mechanisms that account for its remarkable halotolerant traits remain extremely unknown. To characterize its genome feature, we combined PacBio and Illumina sequencing to assemble the first high-quality and near-complete macronuclear genome of P.

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Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder with persistent hyperglycemia caused by a variety of underlying factors. Chronic hyperglycemia can lead to diverse serious consequences and diversified complications, which pose a serious threat to patients. Among the major complications are cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, diabetic foot ulcers, diabetic retinopathy, and neurological disorders.

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  • This study examines the variety of circular replicase-encoding single-stranded DNA (CRESS-DNA) viruses found in wild birds in China, focusing on the viral diversity and challenges posed by zoonotic diseases.
  • Using viral metagenomics, researchers analyzed over 3,400 cloacal swabs, revealing that a large percentage (67.48%) of identified viruses were classified as "viral dark matter," highlighting the rich but largely unexplored viral landscape.
  • The findings showed distinct viral communities and diversity patterns among different bird species, including the identification of ten new Circoviridae viruses and insights into evolutionary relationships, enhancing the understanding of how these viruses interact with their avian hosts.
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Background: Dying in a preferred place is important for a good death. Currently, no study has evaluated the extent to which the preferences for the place of death (PoD) are met among terminal cancer patients in China. This study examined the congruence between the preferred and actual PoD and its predictors among terminal cancer patients in China.

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Objective: This study aimed to identify latent subgroups of dyadic coping (DC) among colorectal cancer (CRC) patients and their spousal caregivers, and to explore the factors associated with these subgroups.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study involving 268 pairs of CRC patients and their spousal caregivers. Participants completed the General Information Questionnaire, the Dyadic Coping Inventory, the Cancer-Related Communication Problems Scale, and the Fear of Progress Questionnaire-Short Form.

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  • - The study aimed to investigate how well advanced cancer patients and their family caregivers agree on preferences for life-sustaining treatments in mainland China, highlighting a gap in knowledge about this issue.
  • - Conducted from September 2019 to December 2021 with 406 patient-caregiver pairs, the findings showed an average concordance rate of only 56.1%, indicating a significant lack of agreement between them.
  • - Factors that improved concordance included the patient's marital status, higher education level, understanding of diagnosis and treatment effects, and the caregiver's education, suggesting that better communication and education are crucial for respecting patients' end-of-life wishes.
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Melanoma, a highly malignant tumour, presents significant challenges due to its cellular heterogeneity, yet research on this aspect in cutaneous melanoma remains limited. In this study, we utilized single-cell data from 92,521 cells to explore the tumour cell landscape. Through clustering analysis, we identified six distinct cell clusters and investigated their differentiation and metabolic heterogeneity using multi-omics approaches.

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Background: Post-stroke depression (PSD) is a frequent complication following a stroke, characterized by prolonged feelings of sadness and loss of interest, which can significantly impede stroke rehabilitation, increase disability, and raise mortality rates. Traditional antidepressants often have significant side effects and poor patient adherence, necessitating the exploration of more suitable treatments for PSD. Previous researchers and our research team have discovered that Botulinum Toxin A (BoNT-A) exhibits antidepressant effects.

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Background: The safety and efficacy of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) in ischemic stroke patients with intracranial artery stenosis (ICAS) remain contentious.

Aims: This study evaluates DAPT's effectiveness and safety for these patients.

Methods: This review was reported following PRISMA 2020 guidelines.

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Objective: Although the robotic surgical system has accumulated rich experience in the development of thoracic surgery, its application in Tibet area is relatively late. We report our experience concerning da Vinci Xi system in thoracic surgery and observe its practicability and surgical effect.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 26 patients who underwent robotic thoracic surgery including: twelve lung resection, two esophagectomies, ten mediastinal surgeries and two rib mass resection.

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Background: Cancer literacy as a potential health intervention tool directly impacted the success of cancer prevention and treatment initiatives. This study aimed to evaluate the cancer literacy in Northeast China, and explore the factors contributing to urban-rural disparities.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 14 cities across Liaoning Province, China, from August to October 2021, using the multistage probability proportional to size sampling (PPS) method.

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Background: Like all other species, fungi are susceptible to infection by viruses. The diversity of fungal viruses has been rapidly expanding in recent years due to the availability of advanced sequencing technologies. However, compared to other virome studies, the research on fungi-associated viruses remains limited.

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The widespread attention towards 1,4-butanediol (BDO) as a key chemical raw material stems from its potential in producing biodegradable plastics. However, the efficiency of its biosynthesis via current bioprocesses is limited. In this study, a dual-pathway approach for 1,4-BDO production from succinic acid was developed.

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Introduction: Multiple targets are considered as the causes of ambient fine particulate matter [aerodynamic diameters of < 2.5 μm (PM)] induced lung function injury. Qiju granules are derived from the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula known as Qi-Ju-Di-Huang-Wan (Lycium, Chrysanthemum, and Rehmannia Formula, QJDHW), which has been traditionally used to treat symptoms such as cough with phlegm, dry mouth and throat, and liver heat.

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Background: Sepsis-associated encephalopathy (SAE) presents a significant clinical challenge, associated with increased mortality and healthcare expenses. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), involving inhaling pure or highly concentrated oxygen under pressures exceeding one atmosphere, has demonstrated neuroprotective effects in various conditions. However, the precise mechanisms underlying its protective actions against sepsis-associated brain injury remain unclear.

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Article Synopsis
  • - In 2017, significant measles outbreaks in Ganzi and Aba prefectures, Sichuan, threatened China’s goal of measles elimination, as these areas accounted for 95% of the provincial cases.
  • - A targeted measles-rubella catch-up campaign in March-April 2017 successfully vaccinated a large majority of unvaccinated children in both prefectures, with 96.34% in Ganzi and 98.19% in Aba receiving the vaccine.
  • - The collaboration not only ended the outbreak within a month but also helped improve local immunization programs and maintained low incidence rates for six years, demonstrating the effectiveness of this approach.
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Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a significant clinical microvascular complication associated with diabetes mellitus (DM), and end-stage diabetes giving rise to kidney failure is developing into the major etiological factor of chronic kidney failure. Dapagliflozin is reported to limit podocyte damage in DM, which has proven to protect against renal failure. Mounting evidence has demonstrated that pyroptosis is associated with DM progression.

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Upland cotton, the mainly cultivated cotton species in the world, provides over 90% of natural raw materials (fibers) for the textile industry. The development of cotton fibers that are unicellular and highly elongated trichomes on seeds is a delicate and complex process. However, the regulatory mechanism of fiber development is still largely unclear in detail.

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Background: Foot dystonia occurs in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and leads to pain, malformation, and difficulty with walking. Botulinum toxin injections may be effective for foot dystonia, but the extent of improvement and effects on motor function are unclear.

Methods: In this study, we performed botulinum toxin injections for foot dystonia in 25 patients with PD.

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  • - The study evaluated the effectiveness of low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening for lung cancer in over 255,000 participants aged 40 to 74 in China as part of the China Urban Cancer Screening Program from 2012 to 2019.
  • - Among high-risk participants, those who underwent LDCT screening showed a 37% increased incidence of lung cancer but experienced a 31% reduction in lung cancer mortality and a 23% decrease in all-cause mortality compared to those who were not screened.
  • - Ultimately, the findings suggest that a single LDCT scan significantly lowers lung cancer and overall mortality rates in the population studied, indicating the potential benefits of LDCT screening in lung cancer prevention.
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Background: Abnormal serum ferritin levels are associated with a variety of diseases. Meanwhile, abnormal serum ferritin is influenced by a variety of risk factors, but its correlation with obesity remains poorly described.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association of body mass index (BMI) and weight waist adjustment index (WWI) with serum ferritin in US adults.

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