Publications by authors named "Yichen Xu"

Article Synopsis
  • Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is crucial for carbon recycling in aquatic ecosystems and its photochemical behavior significantly influences this process.
  • * Research over the past 30 years has focused on the generation of reactive species (RS) from DOM under sunlight, but there’s been limited comprehensive analysis of its behavior in both freshwater and seawater environments.
  • * The unique properties of seawater, including high pH and ionic strength, affect how RS are produced and how they interact with other substances, impacting environmental transformations and possibly human and ecological health.
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An understanding of how irrigation regimes affect autotrophic microorganisms is essential, as this has direct implications for the soil organic carbon (SOC) content, rice yield and the sustainable agricultural practices. Here, the effects of three irrigation regimes on autotrophic microorganisms, soil active organic carbon fractions, and rice yield were explored. The irrigation regimes were: 1) rainfed (RF), 2) midseason drying (MD), and 3) continuous flooding (CF).

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Introduction: Previous studies reported inconsistent results of the association between Helicobacter pylori infection and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Methods: A cohort study of 2,063 adults without NAFLD at baseline, who participated in a repeated health checkup including a 13C-urea breath test and abdominal ultrasonography, was conducted to evaluate the link between H. pylori infection and NAFLD development.

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Microorganisms are crucial for natural remediation of heavy metal pollution in mining areas. The regional survey and process analysis of Mn mine microbes is still limited. We investigated microbial species composition in tailings and adjacent soils of seven typical Mn mining areas in wet mid-subtropical China.

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Background: Failure to restore missing teeth in time can easily lead to the mesial tilting of the distal abutment teeth. However, a fixed partial denture (FPD) can improve stress conduction and distribution and prevent periodontal injuries. In these more complex cases, it is necessary to consider various factors comprehensively to improve conventional treatment planning and achieve better results.

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Pyroptosis, a newly identified form of programmed cell death intertwined with inflammatory responses, is facilitated by the Gasdermin family's pore-forming activity, leading to cell lysis and the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. This process is a double-edged sword in innate immunity, offering protection against pathogens while risking excessive inflammation and tissue damage when dysregulated. Specifically, pyroptosis operates through two distinct signaling pathways, namely the Caspase-1 pathway and the Caspase-4/5/11 pathway.

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Article Synopsis
  • Perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) are stubborn pollutants that resist breaking down in the environment, raising major concerns about their persistence.
  • Researchers created a modified form of sphalerite (ZnS) that includes amine groups and zinc defects to improve its capacity for PFAS adsorption and degradation when exposed to UV light.
  • The study found that using a medium concentration of the surfactant CTAB significantly enhances the material's effectiveness, demonstrating a high adsorption capacity and fast degradation rates, indicating its potential for environmental cleanup applications.
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  • A nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbon dot (N, S-CDs) was easily created using thiourea and citric acid to serve as a fluorescence probe for detecting mercury and iodine ions in water and biological samples.
  • Under UV light, these carbon dots emit blue fluorescence, which is initially reduced when mercury ions are present due to an electron transfer reaction.
  • The fluorescence can be restored by adding iodine, as it forms complexes with mercury, allowing for highly selective and sensitive detection of both ions, effective even in live biological imaging.
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Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Euonymus alatus (Thunb.) Siebold. (EA), a traditional Chinese medicine, is widely used in the treatment of diabetes.

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Treatment of advanced triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a great challenge in clinical practice. The immune checkpoints are a category of immunosuppressive molecules that cancer could hijack and impede anti-tumor immunity. Targeting immune checkpoints, such as anti-programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) therapy, is a promising therapeutic strategy in TNBC.

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  • High-performance thermoelectric (TE) materials are crucial for converting abundant waste heat into electricity, but conventional inorganic TE materials face issues like high cost and low flexibility.
  • Organic TE materials, primarily conducting polymers, offer benefits such as lower cost, better flexibility, and easier processing, making them a promising alternative.
  • The properties of these organic TE materials can be optimized through various doping methods, including oxidative and protonic acid doping, which enhance conductivity and the Seebeck coefficient, with secondary doping also playing a role in improving performance.
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Sleep disturbances profoundly affect the quality of life in individuals with neurological disorders. Closed-loop deep brain stimulation (DBS) holds promise for alleviating sleep symptoms, however, this technique necessitates automated sleep stage decoding from intracranial signals. We leveraged overnight data from 121 patients with movement disorders (Parkinson's disease, Essential Tremor, Dystonia, Essential Tremor, Huntington's disease, and Tourette's syndrome) in whom synchronized polysomnograms and basal ganglia local field potentials were recorded, to develop a generalized, multi-class, sleep specific decoder - BGOOSE.

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Differentiation of Leydig cells plays a key role in male reproductive function. Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) have emerged as a potential cell source for generating Leydig-like cells due to their multipotent differentiation capacity and accessibility. This study aimed to investigate the morphological and genetic expression changes of BMSCs during differentiation into Leydig-like cells.

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Background: Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behaviour disorder (RBD) is one of the most common sleep problems and represents a key prodromal marker in Parkinson's disease (PD). It remains unclear whether and how basal ganglia nuclei, structures that are directly involved in the pathology of PD, are implicated in the occurrence of RBD.

Method: Here, in parallel with whole-night video polysomnography, we recorded local field potentials from two major basal ganglia structures, the globus pallidus internus and subthalamic nucleus, in two cohorts of patients with PD who had varied severity of RBD.

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Article Synopsis
  • Current treatments for heart recovery after a heart attack include coronary artery bypass and reperfusion therapies, but these can cause increased oxidative stress.
  • Antioxidant therapies, including vitamin C, have not proven effective in treating cardiovascular diseases, and their use is controversial.
  • This review explores the complex role of vitamin C, discussing its potential as a preventive supplement and its application in targeted cardiovascular therapy.
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Objective: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) has demonstrated efficacy against multiple types of dystonia, but only a few case reports and small-sample studies have investigated the clinical utility of STN-DBS for Meige syndrome, a rare but distressing form of craniofacial dystonia. Furthermore, the effects of DBS on critical neuropsychological sequelae, such as depression and anxiety, are rarely examined. In this study, the authors investigated the therapeutic efficacy of STN-DBS for both motor and psychiatric symptoms of Meige syndrome.

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5-Fluorouracil is a commonly used chemotherapy drug for colorectal cancer. Resistance to 5-Fluorouracil remains a challenge. This research aimed to explore the mechanism of 5-Fluorouracil resistance in colorectal cancer.

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  • The study investigated the relationship between frailty (physical weakness) and self-rated health (SRH) in older adults, focusing on how these factors relate to mortality risks.
  • Data was collected from over 5,300 adults aged 60 and above in China to analyze both frailty levels and health perceptions.
  • Findings showed that while frailty increases mortality risk, those who report poor health are also significantly at risk, and the combination of frailty and poor SRH can be crucial in understanding overall health outcomes.
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Glucose-responsive formulations of insulin can increase its therapeutic index and reduce the burden of its administration. However, it has been difficult to develop single-dosage formulations that can release insulin in both a sustained and glucose-responsive manner. Here we report the development of a subcutaneously injected glucose-responsive formulation that nearly does not trigger the formation of a fibrous capsule and that leads to week-long normoglycaemia and negligible hypoglycaemia in mice and minipigs with type 1 diabetes.

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Ledge formation presents a significant challenge in endodontic treatment. Yet, there is still a lack of educational tooth models for hands-on practice. This study aimed to create and evaluate a tooth model for ledge management practice.

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This study presents a method utilizing heated ophthalmologic cautery to develop a viable model for investigating oronasal fistulas. C57BL/6 mice were used to establish the oronasal fistula (ONF) model. To create the ONF, the mice were anesthetized, immobilized, and their hard palates were exposed.

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Postural instability/gait disturbance (PIGD) is very common in advanced Parkinson's disease, and associated with cognitive dysfunction. Research suggests that low frequency (5-12 Hz) subthalamic nucleus-deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) could improve cognition in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). However, the clinical effectiveness of low frequency stimulation in PIGD patients has not been explored.

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Article Synopsis
  • Freezing of gait is a major challenge for Parkinson's disease patients, and while deep brain stimulation can help, its effectiveness varies post-surgery.
  • This study analyzed data from 76 patients who underwent bilateral high-frequency subthalamic stimulation to identify the best and worst stimulation sites and their linked networks.
  • The research found that stimulating the dorsolateral part of the subthalamic nucleus was most beneficial, while certain areas caused worsening symptoms, with specific brain connections influencing outcomes.
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Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with excessive beta activity in the basal ganglia. Brain sensing implants aim to leverage this biomarker for demand-dependent adaptive stimulation. Sleep disturbance is among the most common non-motor symptoms in PD, but its relationship with beta activity is unknown.

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  • This study investigated the soil microbial communities (bacteria and fungi) in Chinese fir plantations at three different ages: 7, 15, and 25 years, to understand how forest maturity affects soil characteristics.
  • Results indicated that older plantations (15 and 25 years) had higher microbial diversity than the younger ones (7 years), despite the younger stands having better soil nutrient levels and enzyme activities.
  • The findings emphasized that soil microbial diversity does not align perfectly with soil nutrient changes during forest development, highlighting the importance of nurturing soil health during the middle stages for better long-term forestry management.
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