Biomarkers of Prothrombotic State and Risk Assessment of Exacerbations in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Background: Epidemiologic studies have shown that patients with acute exacerbation of COPD (AECOPD) suffer from morbidity and mortality from venous thromboembolism (VTE) and poor diagnosis. Von Willebrand factor (vWF) and plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1 (PAI-1) are frequently investigated in COPD as crucial parameters for coagulation and fibrinolysis. Nevertheless, the role of vWF and PAI-1 in AECOPD needs further exploration.

Examining the Effects of PrEP Use on Sexual Behaviors and Sexually Transmitted Infections Among Chinese Men who have Sex with Men: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Men who have sex with men (MSM) is a high-risk population for HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is effective in HIV prevention. This study aims to examine the differences in sexual behaviors, STI prevalence and HIV/STI testing across subgroups of MSM with various PrEP use.

Experimental and numerical investigations on stress concentration factors of concrete filled steel tube X-joints.

An SHS-CFSHS X-joint is fabricated by welding two square hollow section (SHS) braces to a concrete-filled square hollow section (CFSHS) chord. In this paper, the stress concentration factors (SCFs) of SHS-CFSHS X-joints are investigated through experimental tests and finite element analysis (FEA), with the hot spot stress method serving as the analytical approach. Eight specimens are designed and manufactured, with FE models built in software ANSYS.

Optimising HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and testing strategies in men who have sex with men in Australia, Thailand, and China: a modelling study and cost-effectiveness analysis.

Background: Men who have sex with men (MSM) in the Asia-Pacific region have a disproportionately high burden of HIV infection compared with the general population. Although pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV is highly effective at preventing new HIV infections, the cost-effectiveness of PrEP for MSM in different countries in the Asia-Pacific region with varying PrEP coverage and HIV testing frequencies remains unstudied. We aimed to analyse the economic and health benefits of long-acting injectable cabotegravir (CAB-LA) compared with oral PrEP in high-income countries and low-income and middle-income countries within the Asia-Pacific region.

The predictive value of baseline symptom score and the peripheral CD4CD8 double-positive T cells in patients with AECOPD.

Background: Accurate prediction of acute exacerbation helps select patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) for individualized therapy. The potential of lymphocyte subsets to function as clinical predictive factors for acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) remains uncertain.

Methods: In this single-center prospective cohort study with a 2-year follow-up, 137 patients aged 51 to 79 with AECOPD were enrolled.

Monitoring Inattention in Construction Workers Caused by Physical Fatigue Using Electrocardiograph (ECG) and Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) Sensors.

Physical fatigue is frequent for heavy manual laborers like construction workers, but it causes distraction and may lead to safety incidents. The purpose of this study is to develop predictive models for monitoring construction workers' inattention caused by physical fatigue utilizing electrocardiograph (ECG) and galvanic skin response (GSR) sensors. Thirty participants were invited to complete an attention-demanding task under non-fatigued and physically fatigued conditions.

Small airway dysfunction associated with poor short-term outcomes in patients undergoing thoracoscopic surgery for lung cancer.

Background: Although small airway dysfunction is a common respiratory dysfunction, its prognosis after lung cancer surgery is often neglected. This study investigated the relationship between small airway dysfunction and outcomes in patients who underwent thoracoscopic surgery for lung cancer.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study of patients who underwent thoracoscopic surgery was conducted between December 2019 and March 2021 at Ningbo First Hospital.

Reflex Hepatitis C Virus Viral Load Testing Following an Initial Positive Hepatitis C Virus Antibody Test: A Global Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background: Many people who have a positive hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody (Ab) test never receive a confirmatory HCV RNA viral load (VL) test. Reflex VL testing may help address this problem. We undertook a systematic review to evaluate the effectiveness of reflex VL testing compared with standard nonreflex approaches on outcomes across the HCV care cascade.

Safety of Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines Among Adults with Experience of Allergies to Food or Medicines.

The global pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), commonly known as COVID-19, poses significant risk to human health worldwide. The primary strategy for controlling the disease is through vaccination. However, there is an urgent need to establish confidence in the safety of global vaccination efforts, particularly among populations with allergies, as evidence on the adverse effects of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in this group remains limited.

ATM participates in fine particulate matter-induced airway inflammation through regulating DNA damage and DNA damage response.

The relationship between fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and chronic airway inflammatory diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma, have garnered public attention, while the detailed mechanisms of PM2.5-induced airway inflammation remain unclear.

Using complete blood count, serum immunoglobulins G/A/M and complement C3/C4 levels to predict the risk of COPD acute exacerbation: 2-year follow-up in a single-center prospective cohort study.

Autoimmunity is present in patients with stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), playing a role in indirect and direct ways. We aimed to explore whether autoimmunity could play a role in COPD exacerbations and construct autoimmunity-related prediction models. This prospective, longitudinal, observational cohort study enrolled 155 patients with acute COPD exacerbations (AECOPD) followed for at least two years.

A comparison of the chemiluminescence immunoassay and immunofluorescence test in detecting anti-dsDNA antibodies and assessing the activity of systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objectives: This study aimed to compare the YHLO chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) with the immunofluorescence test (CLIFT) to detect anti-dsDNA antibodies and its correlation with disease activity in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Method: In total, 208 patients diagnosed with SLE, 110 other autoimmune patients, 70 infectious disorders patients, and 105 healthy people were enrolled in this study. Serum samples were tested using CLIA in a YHLO chemiluminescence system and CLIFT.

Aerobic exercise reduced the amount of CHRONO bound to BMAL1 and ameliorated glucose metabolic dysfunction in skeletal muscle of high-fat diet-fed mice.

Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of aerobic exercise on the CHRONO-BMAL1 pathway and glucose metabolism in skeletal muscle of high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice.

Main Methods: Male C57BL/6J mice were randomly allocated into four groups: normal chow diet with control (NCD + CON), NCD with exercise (NCD + EXE), HFD with control (HFD + CON) and HFD with exercise (HFD + EXE). The NCD and HFD groups were respectively fed a diet of 10 % and 60 % kilocalories from fat for 12 weeks.

Regular Exercise in Prevents Age-Related Cardiac Dysfunction Caused by High Fat and Heart-Specific Knockdown of .

Skuld (skd) is a subunit of the Mediator complex subunit complex. In the heart, skd controls systemic obesity, is involved in systemic energy metabolism, and is closely linked to cardiac function and aging. However, it is unclear whether the effect of cardiac skd on cardiac energy metabolism affects cardiac function.

Independent risk factors of asthma exacerbations: 3-year follow-up in a single-center prospective cohort study.

Background: Because minimizing future risk is the goal of asthma chronic asthma management, it is particularly important to identify risk factors. We conducted this 3-year single-center prospective cohort study to determine the independent risk factors of asthma exacerbations (AEs).

Methods: We performed this prospective, longitudinal, observational study with a 3-year follow-up on 257 patients aged 18-81 years with at least a 1-year history of asthma.

Skeletal-Muscle-Specific Overexpression of Chrono Leads to Disruption of Glucose Metabolism and Exercise Capacity.

Disruption of circadian rhythms is related to disorders of glucose metabolism, and the molecular clock also exists in skeletal muscle. The ChIP-derived repressor of network oscillator (Chrono) and brain and muscle ARNT-like 1 (Bmal1) are core circadian components. Chrono is considered to be the repressor of Bmal1, and the Chrono-Bmal1 pathway is important in regulating the circadian rhythm; it has been speculated that this pathway could be a new mechanism for regulating glucose metabolism.

Association between Blood Donation and Malignant and Benign Tumour Risk: A Population-Based Study of 3.4 Million Participants in China.

This study aims to identify the relationship between blood donation and malignant and benign tumour hospitalization risk. The cohort study was constructed in Shaanxi, China, to include blood donors and match nonblood donors one-to-one by gender, age, and county of residence. The study compared the hospitalization records of two groups from 2012 to 2018.

Nasal Bacterial Microbiome Differs Between Healthy Controls and Those With Asthma and Allergic Rhinitis.

Perturbation of the microbiome has numerous associations with the phenotypes and progression in chronic airways disease. However, the differences in the nasal microbiome in asthma and allergic rhinitis (AR) have not been defined. We examined whether the nasal microbiome would vary among different comorbidities in asthma and AR and that those differences may be associated with the severity of asthma.

Positive Effects of a Perovskite Film on the Radioluminescence Properties of a ZnO:Ga Crystal Scintillator.

To improve the radioluminescence (RL) performance of ZnO:Ga (GZO) crystal scintillators and overcome the challenge of their self-absorption, we proposed a two-layer composite scintillator consisting of a GZO wafer and a 70 nm lead halide perovskite film(CsPbBr, CHNHPbBr). The effects of the perovskite film on the RL properties were studied. The results showed that the perovskite quantum dot film substantially changed the RL spectrum of GZO and prevented self-absorption.

Knockdown of lncRNA SNHG15 Ameliorates Oxygen and Glucose Deprivation (OGD)-Induced Neuronal Injury via Regulating the miR-9-5p/TIPARP Axis.

Stroke is a cerebrovascular disease with impaired nerve function. Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) is considered to be an important regulator of various diseases. Nevertheless, the role of lncRNA small nucleolar RNA host gene 15 (SNHG15) in cerebral ischemia injury induced by stroke is still unclear.

Long non-coding RNA ZFAS1 exerts a protective role to alleviate oxygen and glucose deprivation-mediated injury in ischemic stroke cell model through targeting miR-186-5p/MCL1 axis.

Unlabelled: In recent years, accumulating articles have revealed that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play crucial roles in ischemic stroke (IS). A previous study found that lncRNA zinc finger antisense 1 (ZFAS1) was down-regulated in IS patients compared with healthy controls. However, the precise function of ZFAS1 in IS and its associated mechanism remain unclear.

LncRNA GAS5 Silencing Attenuates Oxygen-Glucose Deprivation/Reperfusion-Induced Injury in Brain Microvascular Endothelial Cells via miR-34b-3p-Dependent Regulation of EPHA4.

Background: The aim of our study was to explore the role of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) growth arrest-specific 5 (GAS5) in ischemic stroke using oxygen-glucose deprivation/reperfusion (OGD/R)-induced bEnd.3 cells as in vitro cell model.

Methods: Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and Western blot assay were adopted to analyze RNA and protein expression.

New estimate of chemical weathering rate in Xijiang River Basin based on multi-model.

Hydrochemistry and Sr isotope compositions were measured in water samples collected during high- and low-water periods from the main stream and tributaries of the Xijiang River Basin in southern China. The primary weathering end-members were analyzed and calculated using the multi-model combination and classic hydrogeochemical method. During the high-water period, structural factors were found to be the main factors controlling chemical weathering in the basin, whereas anthropogenic activity and other random factors had a negligible influence.