Comprehensive analysis of transplacental transfer of environmental pollutants detected in paired maternal and cord serums.

Prenatal exposure to hazardous environmental pollutants is a critical global concern due to their confirmed presence in umbilical cord blood, indicating the ability of pollutants to cross the placental barrier and expose the fetus to harmful compounds. However, the transplacental transfer efficiencies (TTEs) of many pollutants remain underexplored. Herein, we developed a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method to quantitatively analyze 91 environmental pollutants, including 13 bisphenols (BPs), 18 organophosphorus flame retardants (OPFRs), 7 brominated and other flame retardants (BFRs), 34 phthalates (PAEs), and 19 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), in paired maternal and cord serums.

Factors Associated With Digital Capacity for Health Promotion Among Primary Care Workers: Cross-Sectional Survey Study.

Background: Health education and promotion are recognized as effective strategies for fostering healthy ageing, reducing the disease burden, and addressing health inequalities, particularly when delivered through digital media. Primary care workers are often regarded as the key providers of these interventions. Despite the strong practical significance and substantial individual demand, the use of digital media for delivering health promotion practices was not widespread in China.

Unveiling the hidden dangers: enteropathogens carried by flies in Pudong New Area.

Background: Flies are acknowledged as vectors of diseases transmitted through mechanical means and represent a significant risk to human health. The study aimed to determine the prevalence of enteropathogens carried by flies in Pudong New Area to inform strategies for preventing and controlling flies.

Methods: Samples were collected from various locations in the area using cage trapping techniques between April and November 2021, encompassing various habitats such as parks, residential areas, restaurants, and farmers' markets.

Structural characterization of Aspalatus linearis polysaccharide and its improving effect on acute alcoholic liver injury.

Polysaccharides from natural sources can regulate the composition of intestinal flora through the "gut-liver axis" pathway, potentially ameliorating alcoholic liver injury. Aspalathus linearis, also known as rooibos, is one such natural product that has shown promise in this regard. This study looked at the structural properties of A.

Tailored design of NHS-SS-NHS cross-linked chitosan nano-hydrogels for enhanced anti-tumor efficacy by GSH-responsive drug release.

The traditional chemotherapeutic agents' disadvantages such as high toxicity, untargeting and poor water solubility lead to disappointing chemotherapy effects, which restricts its clinical application. In this work, novel size-appropriate and glutathione (GSH)-responsive nano-hydrogels were successfully prepared via the active ester method between chitosan (containing -NH) and cross-linker (containing NHS). Especially, the cross-linker was elaborately designed to possess a disulfide linkage (SS) as well as two terminal NHS groups, namely NHS-SS-NHS.

Ethanol Extract of Improves Dextran Sulfate Sodium-Induced Ulcerative Colitis by Alleviating Inflammation and Restoring Gut Microbiota Dysbiosis in Mice.

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a kind of inflammatory bowel condition characterized by inflammation within the mucous membrane, rectal bleeding, diarrhea, and pain experienced in the abdominal region. Existing medications for UC have limited treatment efficacy and primarily focus on symptom relief. Limonium bicolor (LB), an aquatic traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), exerts multi-targeted therapeutic effects with few side effects and is used to treat anemia and hemostasis.

The neurocomputational signature of decision-making for unfair offers in females under acute psychological stress.

Stress is a crucial factor affecting social decision-making. However, its impacts on the behavioral and neural processes of females' unfairness decision-making remain unclear. Combining computational modeling and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), this study attempted to illuminate the neurocomputational signature of unfairness decision-making in females.

The association of dietary patterns with latent tuberculosis infection among young adults: A case-control study in Shanghai.

Introduction: In developing and underdeveloped countries, undernutrition plays a major role in subverting the immune system, leading to an increase in TB infections; this study investigated the associations between dietary patterns and latent tuberculosis infection risk among young adults in Shanghai.

Methodology: In a case-control study, 96 cases of latent tuberculosis infection and 192 healthy controls were studied among contacts of students in clusters of tuberculosis epidemics in colleges from January 2021 to March 2023. A standardized questionnaire assessing sociodemographic, lifestyle, and dietary characteristics was applied.

The burden of tuberculosis among adolescents and young adults in five Asian countries from 1990 to 2019.

Background: Previous studies have shown that the risk of tuberculosis (TB) increases dramatically during adolescence. The objective of this article was to analyze the burdens and trends of TB incidence and mortality rates in Asian adolescents and young adults.

Methods: Time series ecological study of TB incidence and mortality rates of adolescents and young adults aged 10-24 years from 1990 to 2019, using data extracted from the Global Burden of Disease website for 5 Asian countries.

Single-Base Resolution Detection of -Methyladenosine in RNA by Adenosine Deamination Sequencing.

-Methyladenosine (mA) is one of the most abundant and prevalent natural modifications occurring in diverse RNA species. mA plays a wide range of roles in physiological and pathological processes. Revealing the functions of mA relies on the faithful detection of individual mA sites in RNA.

A polysaccharide from L. flowers relieves ulcerative colitis by regulating the inflammatory signaling pathway and gut microbiota.

A polysaccharide fraction named ATFP was isolated and purified from L. flowers. Its primary structure and therapeutic effects on mice with acute ulcerative colitis were investigated in the present study.

Ramulus Cinnamomi essential oil exerts an anti-inflammatory effect on RAW264.7 cells through N-acylethanolamine acid amidase inhibition.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Ramulus Cinnamomi, the dried twig of Cinnamomum cassia (L.) J.Presl.

Enzymatic Cleavage-Mediated Extension Stalling Enables Accurate Recognition and Quantification of Locus-Specific Uracil Modification in DNA.

Chemical modifications in DNA have profound influences on the structures and functions of DNA. Uracil, a naturally occurring DNA modification, can originate from the deamination of cytosine or arise from misincorporation of dUTP into DNA during DNA replication. Uracil in DNA will imperil genomic stability due to their potential in producing detrimental mutations.

The normalization of the active surface sites of bimetallic Pd-Pt catalysts, their inhomogeneity, and their roles in methane activation.

Multi-metallic catalysts containing Pt species are widely used. As there is no methodology to evaluate the quantity of active surface sites of Pt or other metal species, researchers have only published the total conversion or selectivity of all active surface sites. This study focuses on Pt-Pd bimetallic catalysts and uses both methane reaction kinetics and infrared (IR) spectroscopy to characterize the surface Pd and Pt sites.

Bile duct ligation increased dopamine levels in the cerebral cortex of rats partly due to induction of tyrosine hydroxylase.

Background And Purpose: Liver failure is associated with psychiatric alterations, partly resulting from the increased brain dopamine levels. We investigated the relationship between increased dopamine levels and mental abnormalities using bile duct ligation (BDL) rats and the mechanism by which liver failure increased dopamine levels in SH-SY5Y cells. Behavioural tests were carried out on day 13 and 27 following BDL, along with measurements of dopamine and metabolites, expressions of enzymes and transporters related to dopamine metabolism, and its transport into the cortex and the hippocampus.

Epidemiology and Genetic Characteristics of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus in the Hunan and Hebei Provinces of China.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is a significant threat to the pig industry in China. However, the epidemiological characteristics of PRRSV after the outbreak of African swine fever in China were not thoroughly investigated. In the present study, the serological and epidemiological investigations of PRRSV in pigs from the Hunan and Hebei provinces of China were assessed.

Engineered APOBEC3C Sequencing Enables Bisulfite-Free and Direct Detection of DNA Methylation at a Single-Base Resolution.

DNA methylation (5-methylcytosine, 5mC) is the most important epigenetic modification in mammals. Deciphering the roles of 5mC relies on the quantitative detection of 5mC at the single-base resolution. Bisulfite sequencing (BS-seq) is the most often employed technique for mapping 5mC in DNA.

The role of p53 in liver fibrosis.

The tumor suppressor p53 is the central hub of a molecular network, which controls cell proliferation and death, and also plays an important role in the occurrence and development of liver fibrosis. The abundant post-translational processing and modification endow the functional diversity of p53. Considering the relationship between p53 and liver fibrosis, drug intervention targeting p53 or management of p53 regulation might be effective strategies to treat liver fibrosis.

Bisulfite-Free and Single-Base Resolution Detection of Epigenetic DNA Modification of 5-Methylcytosine by Methyltransferase-Directed Labeling with APOBEC3A Deamination Sequencing.

DNA methylation (5-methylcytosine, 5mC) is the most prevalent epigenetic modification that is predominantly found in CG dinucleotides in mammalian genomes. In-depth investigation of the functions of 5mC heavily relies on the quantitative measurement of 5mC at single-base resolution in genomes. Here, we proposed a methyltransferase-directed labeling with APOBEC3A (A3A) deamination sequencing (MLAD-seq) method for the single-base resolution and quantitative detection of 5mC in DNA.

Distinct Denitrifying Phenotypes of Predominant Bacteria Modulate Nitrous Oxide Metabolism in Two Typical Cropland Soils.

Denitrifying nitrous oxide (NO) emissions in agroecosystems result from variations in microbial composition and soil properties. However, the microbial mechanisms of differential NO emissions in agricultural soils are less understood. In this study, microcosm experiments using two main types of Chinese cropland soil were conducted with different supplements of nitrate and glucose to simulate the varying nitrogen and carbon conditions.

Medicinal Formula Huazhi-Rougan Attenuates Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis Through Enhancing Fecal Bile Acid Excretion in Mice.

Huazhi-Rougan (HZRG) formula is a Traditional Chinese medicine prescription, and has been widely used to treat non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its progressive form non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). However, the anti-NASH effects and the underlying mechanisms of HZRG have not yet been characterized. Here we showed that 4-week HZRG treatment alleviated methionine-choline-deficiency (MCD) diet-induced NASH in C57BL/6J mice, as evidenced by the improvement of hepatic steatosis and inflammation, as well as the decrease of serum levels of alanine and aspartate transaminases.

Do underserved and socially vulnerable communities observe more crashes? A spatial examination of social vulnerability and crash risks in Texas.

Understanding the relationship between social vulnerability and traffic crashes is a cornerstone for promoting social justice in transportation planning and policymaking. However, few studies have examined the disparities in traffic crashes by systemically considering the influence of social vulnerability via spatial analysis approaches. This study puts forward a new approach to assess the inequity in transportation safety by spatially examining the relationships between crash risks and the social vulnerability index (SVI) established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).