Integrative metabolomics highlights gut microbiota metabolites as novel NAFLD-related candidate biomarkers in children

Altered gut microbiota and metabolites are important for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in children. We aimed to comprehensively examine the effects of gut metabolites on NAFLD progression. We performed integrative metabolomics (untargeted discovery and targeted validation) analysis of non-alcoholic fatty liver (NAFL), non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and obesity in children. Fecal samples were collected from 75 subjects in the discovery cohort (25 NAFL, 25 NASH, and 25 obese control children) and 145 subjects in an independent validation cohort (53 NAFL, 39 NASH, and 53 obese control children). Among 2,491 metabolites, untargeted metabolomics revealed a complete NAFLD metabolic map containing 318 increased and 123 decreased metabolites. Then, machine learning selected 65 important metabolites that can distinguish the severity of the NAFLD. Furthermore, precision-targeted metabolomics selected 5 novel gut metabolites from 20 typical metabolites. The functionality of candidate metabolites was validated in hepatocyte cell lines. In the end, this study annotated two novel elevated pathogenic metabolites (dodecanoic acid and creatinine) and a relationship between depleted protective gut microbiota (Butyricicoccus and Alistipes), increased inflammation (IL-1β), lipid metabolism (TG), and liver function (ALT and AST). This study demonstrates the role of novel gut metabolites (dodecanoic acid and creatinine), as the fatty acid metabolism regulator contributing to NAFLD development through its influence on inflammation and liver function.

IMPORTANCE

Altered gut microbiota and metabolites are a major cause of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in children. This study demonstrated a complete gut metabolic map of children with NAFLD, containing 318 increased and 123 decreased metabolites by untargeted metabolomic. Multiple validation approaches (machine learning and targeted metabolomic) selected five novel gut metabolites for targeted metabolomics, which can distinguish NAFLD status and severity. The gut microbiota (Butyricicoccus and Alistipes) and metabolites (creatinine and dodecanoic acid) were novel biomarkers associated with impaired liver function and inflammation and validated by experiments of hepatocyte cell lines. The data provide a better understanding of the importance of gut microbiota and metabolite alterations in NAFLD, which implies that the altered gut microbiota and metabolites may represent a potential target to prevent NAFLD development.

PCSK9 dysregulates cholesterol homeostasis and triglyceride metabolism in olanzapine-induced hepatic steatosis via both receptor-dependent and receptor-independent pathways

Schizophrenia, affecting approximately 1% of the global population, is often treated with olanzapine. Despite its efficacy, olanzapine's prolonged use has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD); however, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin type 9 (PCSK9) plays a crucial role in lipid metabolism and is involved in NAFLD pathogenesis via an unknown mechanism. This study aims to investigate the role of PCSK9 in olanzapine-induced NAFLD. C57BL/6J mice and HepG2 and AML12 cell lines were treated with varying concentrations of olanzapine to examine the effects of olanzapine on PCSK9 and lipid metabolism. PCSK9 levels were manipulated using recombinant proteins, plasmids, and small interfering RNAs in vitro, and the effects on hepatic lipid accumulation and gene expression related to lipid metabolism were assessed. Olanzapine treatment significantly increased PCSK9 levels in both animal and cell line models, correlating with elevated lipid accumulation. PCSK9 manipulation demonstrated its central role in mediating hepatic steatosis through both receptor-dependent pathways (impacting NPC1L1) and receptor-independent pathways (affecting lipid synthesis, uptake, and cholesterol biosynthesis). Interestingly, upregulation of SREBP-1c, rather than SREBP-2, was identified as a key driver of PCSK9 increase in olanzapine-induced NAFLD. Our findings establish PCSK9 as a pivotal factor in olanzapine-induced NAFLD, influencing both receptor-related and metabolic pathways. This highlights PCSK9 inhibitors as potential therapeutic agents for managing NAFLD in schizophrenia patients treated with olanzapine.

Identification of commensal gut bacterial strains with lipogenic effects contributing to NAFLD in children

Gut microbiota is known to have a significant impact on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), particularly in children with obesity. However, the specific functions of microbiota at the strain level in this population have not been fully elucidated. In this study, we successfully isolated and identified several commensal gut bacterial strains that were dominant in children with obesity and NAFLD. Among these, four novel isolates were found to have significant lipogenic effects in vitro. These strains exhibited a potential link to hepatocyte steatosis by regulating the expression of genes involved in lipid metabolism and inflammation. Moreover, a larger cohort analysis confirmed that these identified bacterial strains were enriched in the NAFLD group. The integrated analysis of these strains effectively distinguished NASH from NAFL. These four strains might serve as potential biomarkers in children with NAFLD. These findings provided new insights into the exploration of therapeutic targets for NAFLD.

High Thermal Conductivity and Radiative Cooling Designed Boron Nitride Nanosheets/Silk Fibroin Films for Personal Thermal Management

The implementation of passive cooling strategies is crucial for transitioning from the current high-power- and energy-intensive thermal management practices to more environmentally friendly and carbon-neutral alternatives. Among the various approaches, developing thermal management materials with high thermal conductivity and emissivity for effective cooling of personal and wearable devices in both indoor and outdoor settings poses significant challenges. In this study, we successfully fabricated a cooling patch by combining biodegradable silk fibroin with boron nitride nanosheets. This patch exhibits consistent heat dissipation capabilities under different ambient conditions. Leveraging its excellent radiative cooling efficiency (Rsolar = 0.89 and εLWIR = 0.84) and high thermal conductivity (in-plane 27.58 W m-1 K-1 and out-plane 1.77 W m-1 K-1), the cooling patch achieves significant simulated skin temperature reductions of approximately 2.5 and 8.2 °C in outdoor and indoor conditions, respectively. Furthermore, the film demonstrates excellent biosafety and can be recycled and reused for at least three months. This innovative BNNS/SF film holds great potential for advancing the field of personal thermal management materials.

Exhaustive Hydrodefluorination or Deuterodefluorination of Trifluoromethylarenes via Metal-Free Photoredox Catalysis

Perfluoroalkyl compounds are persistent environmental pollutants due to their chemical and thermal stability. Hydrodefluorination is one of the most promising strategies for the disposal of fluorine-containing compounds, which has attracted much attention from a broad spectrum of scientific communities. Herein, we disclose a metal-free, visible-light-promoted protocol for the exhaustive hydrodefluorination of a wide variety of trifluoromethylarenes with up to 95% yields. Moreover, methyl-d3 groups can be obtained via deuterium water with a D ratio of up to 94%.

Testosterone and soluble ST2 as mortality predictive biomarkers in male patients with sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy

Sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy (SIC) is characterized by high mortality and poor outcomes. This study aimed to explore the relationship between testosterone and soluble ST2 (sST2) and all-cause mortality in patients with SIC. Clinical data from SIC patients at Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from January 2021 and March 2023 were reviewed. Serum testosterone and sST2 were measured at admission. Kaplan-Meier analysis and receiver operative characteristic curve (ROC) were used to estimate the predictive values of testosterone and sST2 on 28 days and 90 days mortality of SIC. A total of 327 male subjects with SIC were enrolled in this study. During the 28 days and 90 days follow-up, 87 (26.6%) and 103 deaths (31.5%) occurred, respectively. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed significantly higher 28 days and 90 days survival in patients with higher testosterone and decreased sST2 levels (p < 0.001). Testosterone, sST2, and N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) were significantly associated with 28 days and 90 days mortality (p < 0.05). Partial correlation analysis showed strong positive correlation between testosterone and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (p < 0.001), and negative correlation between testosterone and sST2 (p < 0.001), high-sensitivity troponin I (hs-TnI) levels (p < 0.001) and smoke history (p < 0.01). The concentrations of sST2 were positively related with E/e' ratio (p < 0.001), and negatively correlated with TAPSE (p < 0.001). The combination of testosterone and sST2 enhanced the prediction of both 28 days [area under the ROC curve (AUC), 0.805] and 90 days mortality (AUC, 0.833). Early serum testosterone and sST2 levels could predict mortality of SIC independently and jointly. Further research is needed to determine the utility of biochemical markers in identifying high-risk patients with SIC.

Cultivated Enterococcus faecium B6 from children with obesity promotes nonalcoholic fatty liver disease by the bioactive metabolite tyramine

Gut microbiota plays an essential role in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, the contribution of individual bacterial strains and their metabolites to childhood NAFLD pathogenesis remains poorly understood. Herein, the critical bacteria in children with obesity accompanied by NAFLD were identified by microbiome analysis. Bacteria abundant in the NAFLD group were systematically assessed for their lipogenic effects. The underlying mechanisms and microbial-derived metabolites in NAFLD pathogenesis were investigated using multi-omics and LC-MS/MS analysis. The roles of the crucial metabolite in NAFLD were validated in vitro and in vivo as well as in an additional cohort. The results showed that Enterococcus spp. was enriched in children with obesity and NAFLD. The patient-derived Enterococcus faecium B6 (E. faecium B6) significantly contributed to NAFLD symptoms in mice. E. faecium B6 produced a crucial bioactive metabolite, tyramine, which probably activated PPAR-γ, leading to lipid accumulation, inflammation, and fibrosis in the liver. Moreover, these findings were successfully validated in an additional cohort. This pioneering study elucidated the important functions of cultivated E. faecium B6 and its bioactive metabolite (tyramine) in exacerbating NAFLD. These findings advance the comprehensive understanding of NAFLD pathogenesis and provide new insights for the development of microbe/metabolite-based therapeutic strategies.

Geometrically Compelled Silicon(II)/Silicon(IV) Donor-Acceptor Interaction Enables the Enamination of Nitriles

Discovering new bonding scenarios and subsequently exploring the reactivity contribute substantially to advance the main group element chemistry. Herein, we report on the isolation and characterization of an intriguing class of the hydrido-benzosiloles 2-4. These compounds exhibit a side arm of the amidinatosilylenyl group, featuring unidirectional silicon(II)/silicon(IV) donor-acceptor interaction on account of the geometric constraint. Furthermore, the reactions involving 2-4 with nitriles yield the tricyclic compounds that edge-fused of the Si-heteroimidazolidine-CN2 Si2 , silole-C4 Si, and phenyl-C6 -rings (5-13). These compounds are manifesting a unique reaction that the silicon(II)/silicon(IV) interaction enables the enamination of the α-H-bearing nitriles. The reaction mechanism involved in H-shift under oxidative addition at silylene followed by hydrosilylation of a ketenimine intermediate was revealed by density function theory (DFT) calculations.

Anisotropic Black Phosphorene Structural Modulation for Thermal Storage and Solar-Thermal Conversion

Exploiting novel strategies for simultaneously harvesting ubiquitous, renewable, and easily accessible solar energy based on the photothermal effect, and efficiently storing the acquired thermal energy plays a vital role in revolutionizing the current fossil fuel-dominating energy structure. Developing black phosphorene-based phase-change composites with optimized photothermal conversion efficiencyand high latent heat is the most promising way to achieve efficient solar energy harvesting and rapid thermal energy storage. However, exfoliating high-quality black phosphorene nanosheets  remains challenging, Furthermore, an efficient strategy that can construct the aligned black phosphorene frameworks to maximize thermal conductivity enhancement is still lacking. Herein, high-quality black phosphorene nanosheets are prepared by an optimized exfoliating strategy. Meanwhile, by regulating the temperature gradient during freeze-casting, the framework consisting of shipshape aligned black phosphorene at long-range is successfully fabricated, improving the thermal conductivity of the poly(ethylene glycol) matrix up to 1.81 W m-1  K-1 at 20 vol% black phosphorene loading. The framework also endows the composite with excellent phase-change material encapsulation capacity and  high latent heat of 103.91 J g-1 . It is envisioned that the work advances the paradigm of contrasting frameworks with nanosheets toward controllable structure thermal enhancement of the composites.

Rapid LC-MS/MS detection of 25-hydroxyvitamin D in dried blood spots

BACKGROUND

The detection of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) from dried blood spots (DBS) has been widely studied. However, the existing pretreatment methods suffer from limitations in terms of throughput (usually exceeding 2 h), complexity (involving liquid-liquid extraction or solid-phase extraction), and contamination (including multiple steps of organic solvent evaporation).

RESULTS

We first released 25OHD from DBS samples by 50% acetonitrile solution through ultrasonication. Subsequently, the cold-induced phase separation technique was introduced for in-situ concentration and purification. Afterward, the PTAD derivatization of 25OHD was performed directly, profiting from the high acetonitrile content in the concentrated solution. In the end, the resulting solution was submitted to LC-MS/MS for quantification. The established LC-MS/MS methodology possessed favorable analytical performance, possessing lower limit of quantification of 1 ng/mL pointing to plasma, accuracy of 86.8-110.1% and imprecision of 5.4-16.8%. Method comparison with plasma samples demonstrated that over 93% of the detections met the acceptance limit for cross-validation of ±20%.

SIGNIFICANCE AND NOVELTY

The novel sample preparation can be finished within 15 min and eliminated the traditional steps of extraction and organic solvent evaporation. Based on this high-throughput, reliable and applicable LC-MS/MS method, the detection of 25OHD in DBS samples can be better achieved for clinical patients and researchers with relevant demands.

Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio and serum hsCRP levels in third trimester and adverse pregnancy outcomes in women with gestational diabetes mellitus

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a major complication of pregnancy. GDM is associated with a higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes (APO). The purpose of this study was to assess the association between third-trimester platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) concentration and the risk of APO in GDM pregnant women. This study selected 406 non-elderly gestational diabetes patients diagnosed in the Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from May 2021 to February 2023 as the research objects. According to the presence or absence of APO, they were divided into an APO group (n = 171) and a non-APO group (n = 235). Logistic regression model to evaluate the correlation between PLR and hsCRP and APO in women with GDM; Restricted cubic spline analyses was used to explore nonlinear correlations between PLR or hsCRP and the risk of APO; ROC curve analysis of the diagnostic performance of PLR and hsCRP for APO in women with GDM. APO occurred in 171 of the 406 included participants. Compared with the non-APO group, patients in the APO group had higher PLR and hsCRP levels. The incidence of APO was positively associated with PLR and the hsCRP level in each logistic regression model (P < 0.05). After adjusting for all the risk factors included in this study, restricted cubic spline analyses found that the PLR and the hsCRP level were positively associated with the risk of APO. The levels of PLR and hsCRP in the third trimester are related to the occurrence of APO in women with GDM, and high levels of PLR and hsCRP may indicate the occurrence of APO.

Tale of two systems: the intertwining duality of fibrinolysis and lipoprotein metabolism

Fibrinolysis is an enzymatic process that breaks down fibrin clots, while dyslipidemia refers to abnormal levels of lipids and lipoproteins in the blood. Both fibrinolysis and lipoprotein metabolism are critical mechanisms that regulate a myriad of functions in the body, and the imbalance of these mechanisms is linked to the development of pathologic conditions, such as thrombotic complications in atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. Accumulated evidence indicates the close relationship between the 2 seemingly distinct and complicated systems-fibrinolysis and lipoprotein metabolism. Observational studies in humans found that dyslipidemia, characterized by increased blood apoB-lipoprotein and decreased high-density lipoprotein, is associated with lower fibrinolytic potential. Genetic variants of some fibrinolytic regulators are associated with blood lipid levels, supporting a causal relationship between these regulators and lipoprotein metabolism. Mechanistic studies have elucidated many pathways that link the fibrinolytic system and lipoprotein metabolism. Moreover, profibrinolytic therapies improve lipid panels toward an overall cardiometabolic healthier phenotype, while some lipid-lowering treatments increase fibrinolytic potential. The complex relationship between lipoprotein and fibrinolysis warrants further research to improve our understanding of the bidirectional regulation between the mediators of fibrinolysis and lipoprotein metabolism.

Trends in physical activity and sedentary time among U.S. adults with diabetes: 2007-2020

AIMS

To examine temporal trends in physical activity and sedentary time among U.S. adults with diabetes from 2007 to 2020.

METHODS

We performed serial cross-sectional analyses for participants aged ≥ 20 years with diagnosed diabetes from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2007 to 2020. Participants completed the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire.

RESULTS

The analytic sample comprised 5096 adults with diabetes (mean age: 60.3 years; 48.2% females; 60.1% White people; mean body mass index: 33.0 kg/m2). From 2007-2008 through 2017-March 2020, the proportion of being physically sufficiently active increased from 41.5% (95% CI, 35.9%-47.2%) to 55.8% (95% CI, 51.3%-60.3%) (P-trend<0.001), whereas that of physical inactivity declined from 43.7% (95% CI, 38.1%-49.2%) to 31.0% (95% CI, 27.7%-34.3%) (P-trend<0.001). The decline was driven by increasing engagement in work-related and leisure-time activity. However, engagement in transportation-related activity stayed persistently low (16.7% [95% CI, 14.8%-18.8%] in 2017-March 2020) (P-trend = 0.25), and the mean daily sitting hours remained unaltered (6.2 [95% CI, 5.9-6.5] in 2017-March 2020) (P-trend = 0.60). Adults who were middle-aged or older, or with class III obesity, cardiovascular or chronic kidney concomitants were less likely to be sufficiently active and prone to prolonged sitting.

CONCLUSIONS

Physical activity levels in U.S. adults with diabetes have increased from 2007 to 2020, but about one in two remains inactive or insufficiently active. Sedentary time has not decreased. For diabetes management, nationwide efforts are needed to promote transportation-related physical activity while minimizing prolonged sitting, especially among those who are middle-aged or older, or with severe obesity or other complications.

Facile Borylation of Alkenes, Alkynes, Imines, Arenes and Heteroarenes with N-Heterocyclic Carbene-Boranes and a Heterogeneous Semiconductor Photocatalyst

Although the development of radical chain and photocatalytic borylation reactions using N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-borane as boron source is remarkable, the persistent problems, including the use of hazardous and high-energy radical initiators or the recyclability and photostability issues of soluble homogeneous photocatalysts, still leave great room for further development in a sustainable manner. Herein, we report a conceptually different approach toward highly functionalized organoborane synthesis by using recoverable ultrathin cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanosheets as a heterogeneous photocatalyst, and a general and mild borylation platform that enables regioselective borylation of a wide variety of alkenes (arylethenes, trifluoromethylalkenes, α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds and nitriles), alkynes, imines and electron-poor aromatic rings with NHC-borane as boryl radical precursor. Mechanistic studies and density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that both photogenerated electrons and holes on the CdS fully perform their own roles, thereby resulting in enhancement of photocatalytic activity and stability of CdS.

Cobalt nanoparticles-catalyzed aerobic oxygenation and esterification of alkynes via C≡C bonds cleavage

An unprecedented efficient protocol is developed for the oxidative cleavage of C≡C bonds in alkynes to produce structure-diverse esters using heterogeneous cobalt nanoparticles as catalyst with molecular oxygen as the oxidant. A diverse set of mono- and multisubstituted aromatic and aliphatic alkynes can be effectively cleaved and converted into the corresponding esters. Characterization analysis and control experiments indicate high surface area and pore volume, as well as nanostructured nitrogen-doped graphene-layer coated cobalt nanoparticles are possibly responsible for excellent catalytic activity. Mechanistic studies reveal that ketones derived from alkynes under oxidative conditions are formed as intermediates, which subsequently are converted to esters through a tandem sequential process. The catalyst can be recycled up to five times without significant loss of activity.

Intracellular tPA-PAI-1 interaction determines VLDL assembly in hepatocytes

Apolipoprotein B (apoB)-lipoproteins initiate and promote atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Plasma tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) activity is negatively associated with atherogenic apoB-lipoprotein cholesterol levels in humans, but the mechanisms are unknown. We found that tPA, partially through the lysine-binding site on its Kringle 2 domain, binds to the N terminus of apoB, blocking the interaction between apoB and microsomal triglyceride transfer protein (MTP) in hepatocytes, thereby reducing very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) assembly and plasma apoB-lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) sequesters tPA away from apoB and increases VLDL assembly. Humans with PAI-1 deficiency have smaller VLDL particles and lower plasma levels of apoB-lipoprotein cholesterol. These results suggest a mechanism that fine-tunes VLDL assembly by intracellular interactions among tPA, PAI-1, and apoB in hepatocytes.

Plasma tissue-type plasminogen activator is associated with lipoprotein(a) and clinical outcomes in hospitalized patients with COVID-19

Background

Patients with COVID-19 have a higher risk of thrombosis and thromboembolism, but the underlying mechanism(s) remain to be fully elucidated. In patients with COVID-19, high lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) is positively associated with the risk of ischemic heart disease. Lp(a), composed of an apoB-containing particle and apolipoprotein(a) (apo(a)), inhibits the key fibrinolytic enzyme, tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA). However, whether the higher Lp(a) associates with lower tPA activity, the longitudinal changes of these parameters in hospitalized patients with COVID-19, and their correlation with clinical outcomes are unknown.

Objectives

To assess if Lp(a) associates with lower tPA activity in COVID-19 patients, and how in COVID-19 populations Lp(a) and tPA change post infection.

Methods

Endogenous tPA enzymatic activity, tPA or Lp(a) concentration were measured in plasma from hospitalized patients with and without COVID-19. The association between plasma tPA and adverse clinical outcomes was assessed.

Results

In hospitalized patients with COVID-19, we found lower tPA enzymatic activity and higher plasma Lp(a) than that in non-COVID-19 controls. During hospitalization, Lp(a) increased and tPA activity decreased, which associates with mortality. Among those who survived, Lp(a) decreased and tPA enzymatic activity increased during recovery. In patients with COVID-19, tPA activity is inversely correlated with tPA concentrations, thus, in another larger COVID-19 cohort, we utilized plasma tPA concentration as a surrogate to inversely reflect tPA activity. The tPA concentration was positively associated with death, disease severity, plasma inflammatory, and prothrombotic markers, and with length of hospitalization among those who were discharged.

Conclusion

High Lp(a) concentration provides a possible explanation for low endogenous tPA enzymatic activity, and poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19.

Balance between pallidal neural oscillations correlated with dystonic activity and severity

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

The balance between neural oscillations provides valuable insights into the organisation of neural oscillations related to brain states, which may play important roles in dystonia. We aim to investigate the relationship of the balance in the globus pallidus internus (GPi) with the dystonic severity under different muscular contraction conditions.

METHODS

Twenty-one patients with dystonia were recruited. All of them underwent bilateral GPi implantation, and local field potentials (LFPs) from the GPi were recorded via simultaneous surface electromyography. The power spectral ratio between neural oscillations was computed as the measure of neural balance. This ratio was calculated under high and low dystonic muscular contraction conditions, and its correlation with the dystonic severity was assessed using clinical scores.

RESULTS

The power spectral of the pallidal LFPs peaked in the theta and alpha bands. Within participant comparison showed that the power spectral of the theta oscillations significantly increased during high muscle contraction compared with that during low contraction. The power spectral ratios between the theta and alpha, theta and low beta, and theta and high gamma oscillations were significantly higher during high contraction than during low contraction. The total score and motor score were associated with the power spectral ratio between the low and high beta oscillations, which was correlated with the dystonic severity both during high and low contractions. The power spectral ratios between the low beta and low gamma and between the low beta and high gamma oscillations showed a significantly positive correlation with the total score during both high and low contractions; a correlation with the motor scale score was found only during high contraction. Meanwhile, the power spectral ratio between the theta and alpha oscillations during low contraction showed a significantly negative correlation with the total score. The power spectral ratios between the alpha and high beta, alpha and low gamma, and alpha and high gamma oscillations were significantly correlated with the dystonic severity only during low contraction.

CONCLUSION

The balance between neural oscillations, as quantified by the power ratio between specific frequency bands, differed between the high and low muscular contraction conditions and was correlated with the dystonic severity. The balance between the low and high beta oscillations was correlated with the dystonic severity during both conditions, making this parameter a new possible biomarker for closed-loop deep brain stimulation in patients with dystonia.

Comparison of hospital delivery costs between cesarean section and natural delivery and analysis of influencing factors

OBJECTIVES

The increasing costs of hospital delivery have increased the economic burden of pregnant women, and the mode of delivery is the main factor affecting the costs of hospital delivery. This study aims to explore the difference in costs between cesarean section and natural delivery, and to provide reference for controlling the increase of hospital delivery costs.

METHODS

The data of inpatient delivery in the Hunan Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital from January 2016 to December 2020 were selected to compare the total inpatient costs and average daily costs of cesarean section and natural delivery. The linear trend model was used to analyze the trend change of inpatient delivery costs and the generalized linear model was used to analyze the influential factors for inpatient delivery costs.

RESULTS

The average hospitalization costs of cesarean section (10 447.25 yuan) were higher than that of natural delivery (5 567.95 yuan), and the average daily costs of cesarean section (1 902.57 yuan) were higher than those of natural delivery (1 666.40 yuan). There was no significant increase or decrease in trend for cesarean section, while the average annual growth rate of the costs of natural delivery was 11.79%. The main factors affecting the hospitalization costs of cesarean section and natural delivery included age, occupation, medical insurance, route of admission, length of stay, premature delivery and complications (all P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The total hospitalization costs and average daily costs of cesarean section are higher than those of natural delivery, but the costs of natural delivery show a faster growth trend, and the hospitalization costs of cesarean section and natural delivery should be controlled by targeted measures.

Oxidative cleavage and ammoxidation of organosulfur compounds via synergistic Co-Nx sites and Co nanoparticles catalysis

The cleavage and functionalization of C-S bonds have become a rapidly growing field for the design or discovery of new transformations. However, it is usually difficult to achieve in a direct and selective fashion due to the intrinsic inertness and catalyst-poisonous character. Herein, for the first time, we report a novel and efficient protocol that enables direct oxidative cleavage and cyanation of organosulfur compounds by heterogeneous nonprecious-metal Co-N-C catalyst comprising graphene encapsulated Co nanoparticles and Co-Nx sites using oxygen as environmentally benign oxidant and ammonia as nitrogen source. A wide variety of thiols, sulfides, sulfoxides, sulfones, sulfonamides, and sulfonyl chlorides are viable in this reaction, enabling access to diverse nitriles under cyanide-free conditions. Moreover, modifying the reaction conditions also allows for the cleavage and amidation of organosulfur compounds to deliver amides. This protocol features excellent functional group tolerance, facile scalability, cost-effective and recyclable catalyst, and broad substrate scope. Characterization and mechanistic studies reveal that the remarkable effectiveness of the synergistic catalysis of Co nanoparticles and Co-Nx sites is crucial for achieving outstanding catalytic performance.

[A cross-sectional study on the prevalence rate and influencing factors of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in overweight/obese children]

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the prevalence rate of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in overweight/obese children who visit a hospital, and to explore the influencing factors of NAFLD, in order to provide a basis for the prevention of NAFLD in overweight/obese children.

METHODS

Overweight/obese children who visited Hunan Children's Hospital from June 2019 to September 2021 were recruited. The prevalence rate of NAFLD was examined. Logistic regression analysis was used to explore the factors influencing the development of NAFLD [non-alcoholic fatty liver (NAFL) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)]. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to evaluate the predictive value of the influencing factors for NAFL and NASH.

RESULTS

A total of 844 overweight/obese children aged 6-17 years were enrolled. The prevalence rate of NAFLD in overweight/obese children was 38.2% (322/844), among which the prevalence rates of NAFL and NASH were 28.8% (243/844) and 9.4% (79/844), respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the increase of waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were associated with the development of NAFL and NASH (P<0.05). The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that the combined measurement of WHR and HDL-C had a predictive value for NAFL (area under the curve: 0.653, 95%CI: 0.613-0.694), and for NASH (area under the curve: 0.771, 95%CI: 0.723-0.819).

CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence rate of NAFLD in overweight/obese children who visit a hospital is high. WHR and HDL-C are associated with the development of NAFLD and the combined measurement of WHR and HDL-C has a certain value for predicating the development of NAFLD.

[Study on related factors and characteristics of multimorbidity of overweight and obesity-related diseases in children in Hunan Province]

From January 2019 to December 2021, overweight and obese children who visited in health outpatient Center of Hunan Children's Hospital were studied to explore and analyze the rate, related factors and patterns of multimorbidity of overweight and obesity-related diseases in children in Hunan Province. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used to analyze the multimorbidity-related factors of overweight and obesity-related diseases in children. Association rules (apriori algorithm) were used to explore the multimorbidity patterns of overweight and obesity-related diseases in children. A total of 725 overweight and obese children were included in this study. The multimorbidity rate of overweight and obesity-related diseases in children was 46.07% (334/725). Age, waist circumference, the frequency of food consumption such as hamburgers and fries and adding meals before bedtime were multimorbidity-related factors of overweight and obesity-related diseases in children. The multimorbidity associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) was relatively common. The patterns with the top three support degrees were "NAFLD+dyslipidemia","NAFLD+hypertension" and "NAFLD+hyperuricemia". The patterns with the top three confidence and elevation degrees were "Hypertension+dyslipidemia => NAFLD","Hyperuricemia => NAFLD" and "NAFLD+hypertension => dyslipidemia".

Near-Theoretical Thermal Conductivity Silver Nanoflakes as Reinforcements in Gap-Filling Adhesives

The rapid development of highly integrated microelectronic devices causes urgent demands for advanced thermally conductive adhesives (TCAs) to solve the interfacial heat transfer issue. Due to their natural two-dimensional structure and isotropic thermal conductivity, metal nanoflakes are promising fillers blended with polymer to develop high-performance TCAs. However, achieving corresponding TCAs with thermal conductivity over 10 W m^-1 K^-1 at filler content below 30 vol% remains challenging so far. This longstanding bottleneck is mainly attributed to the fact that most current metal nanoflakes are prepared by "bottom-up" processes (e. g., solution-based chemical synthesis) and inevitably contain lattice defects or impurities, resulting in lower intrinsic thermal conductivities, only 20 - 65% of the theoretical value. Here, a "top-down" strategy by splitting highly purified Ag foil with nanoscale thickness was adopted to prepare two-dimensional Ag nanoflakes with an intrinsic thermal conductivity of 398.2 W m^-1 K^-1 , reaching 93% of the theoretical value. After directly blending with epoxy, the resultant Ag/epoxy exhibited a thermal conductivity of 15.1 W m^-1 K^-1 at low filler content of 18.6 vol%. Additionally, in practical microelectronic cooling performance evaluations, the interfacial heat-transfer efficiency of our Ag/epoxy achieved ≈ 1.4 times that of the state-of-the-art commercial TCA. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Combining Deep Learning and Hydrological Analysis for Identifying Check Dam Systems from Remote Sensing Images and DEMs in the Yellow River Basin

Identifying and extracting check dams is of great significance for soil and water conservation, agricultural management, and ecological assessment. In the Yellow River Basin, the check dam, as a system, generally comprises dam locations and dam-controlled areas. Previous research, however, has focused on dam-controlled areas and has not yet identified all elements of check dam systems. This paper presents a method for automatically identifying check dam systems from digital elevation model (DEM) and remote sensing images. We integrated deep learning and object-based image analysis (OBIA) methods to extract the dam-controlled area's boundaries, and then extracted the location of the check dam using the hydrological analysis method. A case study in the Jiuyuangou watershed shows that the precision and recall of the proposed dam-controlled area extraction approach are 98.56% and 82.40%, respectively, and the F1 score value is 89.76%. The completeness of the extracted dam locations is 94.51%, and the correctness is 80.77%. The results show that the proposed method performs well in identifying check dam systems and can provide important basic data for the analysis of spatial layout optimization and soil and water loss assessment.

The association between glucose fluctuation with sarcopenia in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

OBJECTIVE

Growing evidence shows that sarcopenia is more prevalent in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) than in the normal population. However, currently, data on the relationship between blood glucose fluctuation and sarcopenia in elderly patients with T2DM are still limited.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

In this study, 280 patients ≥ 60 years with T2DM were divided into sarcopenic group and non-sarcopenic group, according to the diagnostic criteria of the 2019 Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia. They wore MeiQi to acquire the indexes including time in range (TIR), time above range (TAR), time below range (TBR), mean amplitude of glycemic excursion (MAGE), coefficient of Variation (CV), blood glucose standard deviation (SD), largest amplitude of glycemic excursions (LAGE) and mean glucose (MG). The prevalence rate of sarcopenia was statistically analyzed and the different indicators of glucose fluctuation between the two groups were compared. We analyzed the indexes of glucose fluctuation and appendicular skeletal muscle mass index (ASMI), handgrip strength, the time of five times sit to stand test (FTSST) with Spearman's correlation analysis. Logistic regression was used to analyze the influence factors for sarcopenia.

RESULTS

The prevalence of sarcopenia was 15.36%. TIR, MG and TAR were correlated with ASMI, handgrip strength, the time of FTSST. MG and TAR were risk factors for sarcopenia, while TIR was the protective factor of sarcopenia. After adjusting mixing factors, logistic regression analysis showed that TIR was an independent protective factor. The result of the Chi-square test showed that the incidence of sarcopenia in different TIR ranges was different: the proportion of patients with sarcopenia was 40.48% (TIR ≤50%), 20.41% (50%<TIR≤70%) and 8.47% (TIR >70%).

CONCLUSIONS

TIR is associated with sarcopenia in elderly T2DM patients. Furtherly, the incidence rate of sarcopenia decreases with the increase of TIR.

Oxidative Cleavage and Ammoxidation of Unsaturated Hydrocarbons via Heterogeneous Auto-Tandem Catalysis

The oxidative cleavage and functionalization of unsaturated C-C bonds are important processes for synthesis of carbonyl compounds from hydrocarbon feedstocks, yet there has been no report of direct amidation of unsaturated hydrocarbons via an oxidative cleavage of unsaturated C-C bonds with molecular oxygen as an environmentally benign oxidant. Herein, for the first time, we describe a manganese oxide-catalyzed auto-tandem catalysis strategy that enables direct synthesis of amides from unsaturated hydrocarbons by coupling oxidative cleavage with amidation. With oxygen as an oxidant and ammonia as a nitrogen source, a wide range of structurally diverse mono- and multisubstituted activated and unactivated alkenes or alkynes can smoothly undergo unsaturated C-C bond cleavage to deliver one- or multiple-carbon shorter amides. Moreover, a slight modification of the reaction conditions also allows for the direct synthesis of sterically hindered nitriles from alkenes or alkynes. This protocol features excellent functional group tolerance, a broad substrate scope, flexible late-stage functionalization, facile scalability, and a cost-effective and recyclable catalyst. Detailed characterizations reveal that the high activity and selectivity of the manganese oxides are attributed to the large specific surface area, abundant oxygen vacancies, better reducibility, and moderate acid sites. Mechanistic studies and density functional theory calculations indicate that the reaction proceeds through divergent pathways depending on the structure of substrates.

A Hierarchically Structured Graphene/Ag Nanowires Paper as Thermal Interface Material

With the increase in heat power density in modern integrating electronics, thermal interface materials (TIM) that can efficiently fill the gaps between the heat source and heat sinks and enhance heat dissipation are urgently needed owing to their high thermal conductivity and excellent mechanical durability. Among all the emerged TIMs, graphene-based TIMs have attracted increasing attention because of the ultrahigh intrinsic thermal conductivity of graphene nanosheets. Despite extensive efforts, developing high-performance graphene-based papers with high through-plane thermal conductivity remains challenging despite their high in-plane thermal conductivity. In this study, a novel strategy for enhancing the through-plane thermal conductivity of graphene papers by in situ depositing AgNWs on graphene sheets (IGAP) was proposed, which could boost the through-plane thermal conductivity of the graphene paper up to 7.48 W m^-1 K^-1 under packaging conditions. In the TIM performance test under actual and simulated operating conditions, our IGAP exhibits strongly enhanced heat dissipation performance compared to the commercial thermal pads. We envision that our IGAP as a TIM has great potential for boosting the development of next-generation integrating circuit electronics.

Identifying the Novel Gut Microbial Metabolite Contributing to Metabolic Syndrome in Children Based on Integrative Analyses of Microbiome-Metabolome Signatures

The pathogenesis of gut microbiota and their metabolites in the development of metabolic syndrome (MS) remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the signatures of gut microbiota and metabolites as well as their functions in obese children with MS. A case-control study was conducted based on 23 MS children and 31 obese controls. The gut microbiome and metabolome were measured using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. An integrative analysis was conducted, combining the results of the gut microbiome and metabolome with extensive clinical indicators. The biological functions of the candidate microbial metabolites were validated in vitro. We identified 9 microbiota and 26 metabolites that were significantly different from the MS and the control group. The clinical indicators of MS were correlated with the altered microbiota Lachnoclostridium, Dialister, and Bacteroides, as well as with the altered metabolites all-trans-13,14-dihydroretinol, DL-dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC), LPC 24: 1, PC (14:1e/10:0), and 4-phenyl-3-buten-2-one, etc. The association network analysis further identified three MS-linked metabolites, including all-trans-13,14-dihydroretinol, DPPC, and 4-phenyl-3-buten-2-one, that were significantly correlated with the altered microbiota. Bio-functional validation showed that all-trans-13, 14-dihydroretinol could significantly upregulate the expression of lipid synthesis genes and inflammatory genes. This study identified a new biomarker that may contribute to MS development. These findings provided new insights regarding the development of efficient therapeutic strategies for MS. IMPORTANCE Metabolic syndrome (MS) has become a health concern worldwide. Gut microbiota and metabolites play an important role in human health. We first endeavored to comprehensively analyze the microbiome and metabolome signatures in obese children and found the novel microbial metabolites in MS. We further validated the biological functions of the metabolites in vitro and illustrated the effects of the microbial metabolites on lipid synthesis and inflammation. The microbial metabolite all-trans-13, 14-dihydroretinol may be a new biomarker in the pathogenesis of MS, especially in obese children. These findings were not available in previous studies, and they provide new insights regarding the management of metabolic syndrome.

Dynamic simulation of land use and land cover and its effect on carbon storage in the Nanjing metropolitan circle under different development scenarios

Land use and land cover (LULC) change is a pattern of alteration of the Earth’s land surface cover by human society and have a significant impact on the terrestrial carbon cycle. Optimizing the distribution of LULC is critical for the redistribution of land resources, the management of carbon storage in terrestrial ecosystems, and global climate change. We integrated the patch-generating land use simulation (PLUS) model and integrated valuation of ecosystem services and trade-offs (InVEST) model to simulate and assess future LULC and ecosystem carbon storage in the Nanjing metropolitan circle in 2030 under four scenarios: natural development (ND), economic development (ED), ecological protection (EP), and collaborative development (CD). The results showed that (1) LULC and carbon storage distribution were spatially heterogenous in the Nanjing metropolitan circle for the different scenarios, with elevation, nighttime lights, and population being the main driving factors of LULC changes; (2) the Nanjing metropolitan circle will experience a carbon increase of 0.50 Tg by 2030 under the EP scenario and losses of 1.74, 3.56, and 0.48 Tg under the ND, ED, and CD scenarios, respectively; and (3) the CD scenario is the most suitable for the development of the Nanjing metropolitan circle because it balances ED and EP. Overall, this study reveals the effects of different development scenarios on LULC and ecosystem carbon storage, and can provide a reference for policymakers and stakeholders to determine the development patterns of metropolitan areas under a dual carbon target orientation.

Recent Tianshan warming in relation to large-scale climate teleconnections

On the alpine areas such as Tianshan Mountains, snow and glaciers are widely distributed, which are sensitive to temperature changes. However, due to high altitude and scarcity of observed stations, the temperature changes and their causes in Tianshan are unclear. To address this issue, this study integrated Thiel-Sen trend test, Pearson correlation, and wavelet analysis methods to analyze the driving factors of temperature changes in Tianshan. We draw the following conclusions: (1) In the past 40 years, Tianshan warmed at a rate of 0.30 °C/decade. Seasonally, the temperature increased the most in spring and summer; spatially, the east Tianshan experienced the most warming. (2) Climate change has affected significant warming in the Tianshan. (3) The large-scale climate teleconnections found to be associated with warming in the Tianshan include North Pacific pattern, Atlantic Multidecadal Variability (AMV), North Atlantic Oscillation, and Western Hemisphere Warm Pool (WHWP). During the study period, the temperature changes lagged AMV and WHWP by 1.5 months, North Tropical Atlantic Index and Tropical Northern Atlantic Index by 3 months, and Arctic Oscillation by 4 months. This research contributes to understanding the response of dry mountains to global warming and atmospheric circulation changes.

Water quality status response to multiple anthropogenic activities in urban river

Water quality evaluation and degrading factors identification are crucial for predicting water quality evolution trends in an urban river. However, under the coupling of multiple factors, these targets face great challenges. The water quality status response to multiple anthropogenic activities in an urban river was evaluated and predicted based on comprehensive assessment methods and random forest (RF) model. We found that the distribution of each physicochemical parameter exhibits an obvious spatial clustering. The mean pollution level and trophic status of the urban river are medium pollution (water quality index = 59.79; Nemerow's pollution index = 2.00) and light eutrophication (trophic level index = 57.30). The water quality status is sensitive to anthropogenic activities, showing the following order of TLI and NPI values: residential district > industrial district > agricultural district and downtown > suburbs > countryside. According to the redundancy analysis, constructed land (F = 15.90, p < 0.01) and domestic sewage (F = 14.20, p < 0.01) evinced as the crucial factors that aggravated the water quality pollution level. Based on the simulation results of the RF model (variation explained = 94.91%; R² = 0.978), improving domestic sewage treatment standards is the most effective measure to improve the water quality (increased by 40.3-49.3%) in residential and industrial districts. While in a suburban district, improving the domestic sewage collection rate has more effectively (23%) than those in the residential and industrial districts. Conclusively, reducing exogenous pollution input and improving domestic sewage treatment standards are vital to urban river restoration. Clinical trial registration Not applicable.

Ultralow Interfacial Thermal Resistance of Graphene Thermal Interface Materials with Surface Metal Liquefaction

Developing advanced thermal interface materials (TIMs) to bridge heat-generating chip and heat sink for constructing an efficient heat transfer interface is the key technology to solve the thermal management issue of high-power semiconductor devices. Based on the ultra-high basal-plane thermal conductivity, graphene is an ideal candidate for preparing high-performance TIMs, preferably to form a vertically aligned structure so that the basal-plane of graphene is consistent with the heat transfer direction of TIM. However, the actual interfacial heat transfer efficiency of currently reported vertically aligned graphene TIMs is far from satisfactory. In addition to the fact that the thermal conductivity of the vertically aligned TIMs can be further improved, another critical factor is the limited actual contact area leading to relatively high contact thermal resistance (20-30 K mm2 W-1) of the "solid-solid" mating interface formed by the vertical graphene and the rough chip/heat sink. To solve this common problem faced by vertically aligned graphene, in this work, we combined mechanical orientation and surface modification strategy to construct a three-tiered TIM composed of mainly vertically aligned graphene in the middle and micrometer-thick liquid metal as a cap layer on upper and lower surfaces. Based on rational graphene orientation regulation in the middle tier, the resultant graphene-based TIM exhibited an ultra-high thermal conductivity of 176 W m-1 K-1. Additionally, we demonstrated that the liquid metal cap layer in contact with the chip/heat sink forms a "liquid-solid" mating interface, significantly increasing the effective heat transfer area and giving a low contact thermal conductivity of 4-6 K mm2 W-1 under packaging conditions. This finding provides valuable guidance for the design of high-performance TIMs based on two-dimensional materials and improves the possibility of their practical application in electronic thermal management.

An enzyme-mimic single Fe-N3 atom catalyst for the oxidative synthesis of nitriles via C─C bond cleavage strategy

The cleavage and functionalization of recalcitrant carbon─carbon bonds is highly challenging but represents a very powerful tool for value-added transformation of feedstock chemicals. Here, an enzyme-mimic iron single-atom catalyst (SAC) bearing iron (III) nitride (FeN₃) motifs was prepared and found to be robust for cleavage and cyanation of carbon-carbon bonds in secondary alcohols and ketones. High nitrile yields are obtained with a wide variety of functional groups. The prepared FeN₃-SAC exhibits high enzyme-like activity and is capable of generating a dioxygen-to-superoxide radical at room temperature, while the commonly reported FeN₄-SAC bearing FeN₄ motifs was inactive. Density functional theory (DFT) calculation reveals that the activation energy of dioxygen activation and the activation energy of the rate-determining step of nitrile formation are lower over FeN₃-SAC than FeN₄-SAC. In addition, DFT calculation also explains the catalyst's high selectivity for nitriles.

Na/K-ATPase suppresses LPS-induced pro-inflammatory signaling through Lyn

Na/K-ATPase (NKA), besides its ion transporter function, is a signal transducer by regulating Src family kinases (SFK). The signaling NKA contributes to oxidized LDL-induced macrophage foam cell formation and interacts with TLR4. However, its role in lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-induced signaling and glycolytic switch in macrophages remains unclear. Using peritoneal macrophages from NKA α1 haploinsufficient mice (NKA α1+/-), we found that NKA α1 haploinsufficiency led to enhanced LPS-stimulated NF-κB pathway, ROS signaling, and pro-inflammatory cytokines. Intraperitoneal injection of LPS resulted in more severe lung inflammation and injury with lower survival rate in NKA α1+/- mice. Additionally, LPS induced a higher extent of the metabolic switch from oxidative phosphorylation to glycolysis. Mechanistically, NKA α1 interacted with TLR4 and Lyn. The presence of NKA α1 in this complex attenuated Lyn activation by LPS, which subsequently restricted the downstream ROS and NF-κB signaling. In conclusion, we demonstrated that NKA α1 suppresses LPS-induced macrophage pro-inflammatory signaling through Lyn.

In Vitro and In Silico Investigations on Drug Delivery in the Mouth-Throat Models with Handihaler®

This work aimed to evaluate the relative inhalation parameters that affect the deposition of inhaled aerosols, including mouth-throat morphology, airflow rate, and initial condition of emitted particles. In vitro experiments were conducted using the US Pharmacopeia (USP) throat and a realistic mouth-throat (RMT) with Handihaler®. Then, in silico study of the gas-solid flow was performed by computational fluid dynamics and discrete phase method. Results indicated that aerosol deposition in RMT was higher compared to that in USP throat at an airflow rate of 30 L/min, with 33.16 ± 7.84% and 21.11 ± 7.1% lung deposition in USP throat and RMT models, respectively, which showed a better correlation with in vivo data from the literature. Increasing airflow rate resulted in better drug aerosolization, while the fine particle dose trend ascended before declining, with the peak value obtained at a flow rate of 40 L/min. Overall, the effect of geometrical variation was more significant. Additionally, in silico results demonstrated clearly that the initial conditions of the emitted particles from inhalers affected the subsequent deposition. Larger momentum possessed by the central aerosol jet entering the mouth directly led to stronger impaction, which resulted in the deposition in the front region of mouth-throat models. This study is beneficial to develop an in silico method to understand the underlying mechanisms of in vivo mouth-throat deposition.

A fine construction method of urban road DEM considering road morphological characteristics

Urban road DEM is not only an important basic geographic information data of the city, but also an important element to describe and express the urban topography, and it is an indispensable part of the construction of the smart digital city, urban planning and urban surface process simulation. Previous methods for constructing urban road DEMs do not sufficiently consider the actual morphological characteristics of urban roads, and morphological distortion is evident in the expression of urban roads, seriously affecting the application of urban rainfall flood simulation and urban pipe network design. In response to these problems, this study proposed a considering morphological characteristics fine (CMCF) method of urban road DEM construction, selected a typical urban road area in the Jianye District of Nanjing City in China as the study area, used the 1:500 digital line graphic as data source, hierarchized roads in accordance with different morphological characteristics from the perspective of DEM construction, constructed the corresponding DEMs, and finally merged all levels of road DEMs to produce a complete high-precision urban road DEM. Results showed that the DEM constructed using the CMCF method not only exhibited higher elevation accuracy than the urban road DEM constructed using previous methods, i.e., inverse distance weighting (IDW) and triangulated irregular network (TIN) methods, with a mean error and a root-mean-square error of 0.015 and 0.060, respectively, but it can also accurately express the spatial element composition form and road morphological characteristics of urban roads, avoiding the distorted expression of road morphological characteristics. This study can provide a reference for a new DEM construction method and data support for smart digital city construction and urban surface simulation.

Protocol for the preparation of amorphous manganese oxide and its application as heterogeneous catalyst in the direct synthesis of amides and nitriles

The cleavage and functionalization of carbon-carbon (C–C) bonds has emerged as a powerful tool for preparing value-added chemicals. In this protocol, we describe the preparation of amorphous manganese oxide and its application as a heterogeneous catalyst in the direct synthesis of amides via successive cleavage and amidation of C–C bonds in alcohols. Furthermore, we describe how a slight modification of reaction conditions allows for the cleavage and cyanation of alcohols to access sterically hindered nitriles.

For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to He et al. (2022).

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Heterogeneous MnO_x-catalyzed cleavage and amidation/cyanation of alcohols

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Convenient preparation of MnO_x in large scale

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Recycling and reusing of MnO_x

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Wide substrate scope and gram-scale synthesis allowable

Publisher’s note: Undertaking any experimental protocol requires adherence to local institutional guidelines for laboratory safety and ethics.

The correlations among racial/ethnic groups, hypertriglyceridemia, thrombosis, and mortality in hospitalized patients with COVID-19

Reports of racial and ethnic disparities regarding both rates of infection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and morbidity of the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) contain profound differences depending on the population. Our previous study has shown that patients with COVID-19 who developed hypertriglyceridemia during hospitalization have a 2.3 times higher mortality rate. However, whether the correlation between hypertriglyceridemia and mortality has disparity among different racial and ethnic groups is unknown. In this study, we investigated the impact of race/ethnicity on the correlation between hypertriglyceridemia and mortality in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. De-identified information from 904 hospitalized patients diagnosed with COVID-19 between March 2020 and June 2021 were extracted from the Medical College of Wisconsin Clinical Data Warehouse. A multivariable regression analysis suggested that the Asians and non-White Hispanics had 4 or 3.9 times higher mortality rate, respectively, after adjusting for age, morbid obesity (BMI ≥40), and gender. The hypertriglyceridemia (≥150 mg/dL) was associated with higher mortality, after adjusting for age, gender, and morbid obesity. The baseline hypertriglyceridemia occurrence had relevantly more consistent percentages among all racial/ethnic groups. However, non-White Hispanic and Asian patients had the highest frequencies of peak hypertriglyceridemia occurrence during hospitalization. The peak hypertriglyceridemia developed during hospitalization correlates with the incidence of thrombosis after adjusting for morbid obesity, age, and sex. In summary, in this retrospective study of 904 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, Asians and non-White Hispanics had a greater likelihood of developing hypertriglyceridemia during hospitalization and mortality than White patients.

Alterations in sorting and secretion of hepatic apoA5 induce hypertriglyceridemia due to short-term use of olanzapine

Long-term use of olanzapine, an antipsychotic drug, induces hypertriglyceridemia, resulting in a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. However, the effects and underlying mechanisms of short-term use of olanzapine on circulating triglyceride levels remain poorly understood. Here, the role of apolipoprotein A5 (apoA5), a regulator of triglyceride metabolism, was investigated in olanzapine-induced hypertriglyceridemia. Our multi-center clinical study recruited 36 schizophrenia patients who received short-term (8 weeks) of olanzapine. Besides, female C57BL/6J mice were treated with olanzapine (3 mg/kg/day versus 6 mg/kg/day) for 6 weeks. We demonstrated that short-term use of olanzapine increased plasma triglyceride and decreased plasma apoA5 levels in the patients and mice, with a negative correlation between the two factors. However, no obesity was observed in the patients and mice. Interestingly, olanzapine increased hepatic apoA5 protein in the mice, without significant changes in hepatic Apoa5 mRNA. Consistently, in vitro studies indicated that olanzapine increased medium triglyceride levels and decreased medium apoA5 levels in a dose-dependent manner in human HepG2 cells and primary mouse hepatocytes. Whereas the olanzapine treatment increased hepatic apoA5 protein in vitro, without effects on hepatic APOA5 mRNA. Of note, olanzapine increased the co-localization between apoA5 protein and accumulated lipid droplets in hepatocytes, as opposed to at the hepatocellular plasma membrane, in mouse liver as demonstrated by fluorescence staining. Therefore, our study indicated that short-term use of olanzapine induced hypertriglyceridemia due to defects of sorting and secretion of hepatic apoA5.

A highly orientational architecture formed by covalently bonded graphene to achieve high through-plane thermal conductivity of polymer composites

Combining the advantages of high thermal conductivities and low graphene contents to fabricate polymer composites for applications in thermal management is still a great challenge due to the high defect degree of exfoliated graphene, the poor orientation of graphene in polymer matrices, and the horrible phonon scattering between graphene/graphene and graphene/polymer interfaces. Herein, mesoplasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technology was successfully employed to synthesize vertically aligned graphene nanowalls (GNWs), which are covalently bonded by high-quality CVD graphene nanosheets. The unique architecture leads to an excellent thermal enhancement capacity of the GNWs, and a corresponding composite film with a matrix of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) presented a high through-plane thermal conductivity of 12.8 ± 0.77 W m^-1 K^-1 at a low filler content of 4.0 wt%, resulting in a thermal conductivity enhancement per 1 wt% graphene loading of 1659, which is far superior to that using conventional graphene structures as thermally conductive pathways. In addition, this composite exhibited an excellent capability in cooling a high-power light-emitting diode (LED) device under real application conditions. Our finding provides a new route to prepare high-performance thermal management materials with low filler loadings via the rational design of the microstructures/interfaces of graphene skeletons.

Copper-Catalyzed Oxidative C-C Bond Cleavage of Alkyl-(Hetero)arenes Enabling Direct Access to Nitriles

The cleavage and functionalization of C-C bonds has emerged as a powerful tool for discovery of new transformations. Herein, we report a protocol that enables direct synthesis of nitriles via copper-catalyzed oxidative cleavage and cyanation of C-C bonds in a wide variety of multicarbon alkyl-substituted (hetero)arenes. Detailed mechanistic studies reveal that a tandem oxidative process is involved in this transformation.

Imaging Findings and Clinical Analysis of Primary Intracranial Pure Yolk Sac Tumors in Children and Adolescents: A Retrospective Study from China

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Primary intracranial pure yolk sac tumor is very rare. Our aim was to summarize the characteristics of primary intracranial pure yolk sac tumors from the clinical and imaging aspects in a retrospective study.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We studied 5 patients with primary intracranial pure yolk sac tumors in Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center from January 2015 to June 2021. A comprehensive literature search was performed on the electronic database of the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (1990 to June 2021). Clinical data based on age, sex, treatment, CT, and MR imaging findings were collected and analyzed.

RESULTS

A total of 25 patients were included in the study, 21 boys and 4 girls. Twenty-one patients underwent plain MR imaging and an enhanced examination, 9 patients underwent DWI, and 12 patients underwent plain CT and/or an enhanced examination. The tumors were posterior fossa in 9 cases and supratentorial in 16 cases. All tumors showed marked enhancement after enhanced scanning by MR imaging or CT. The signal on DWI was similar to that of the cerebral cortex, and the ADC map was similar to or slightly higher than that of the cerebral cortex. Among the cases, 13 were followed up from 2 months to 5 years. There was no recurrence or metastasis in 9 patients with postoperative chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy followed up for 1.5-5 years. Four patients died 2 months to 1.5 years after only an operation, or chemoradiotherapy but no operation.

CONCLUSIONS

There are some relatively specific imaging findings of primary intracranial yolk sac tumors that could assist in their diagnosis. Surgery combined with radiation therapy and/or chemotherapy can achieve a better prognosis.

Enhanced Electromagnetic Shielding and Thermal Conductive Properties of Polyolefin Composites with a Ti3C2Tx MXene/Graphene Framework Connected by a Hydrogen-Bonded Interface

The rapid increase of operation speed, transmission efficiency, and power density of miniaturized devices leads to a rising demand for electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding and thermal management materials in the semiconductor industry. Therefore, it is essential to improve both the EMI shielding and thermal conductive properties of commonly used polyolefin components (such as polyethylene (PE)) in electronic systems. Currently, melt compounding is the most common method to fabricate polyolefin composites, but the difficulty of filler dispersion and high resistance at the filler/filler or filler/matrix interface limits their properties. Here, a fold fabrication strategy was proposed to prepare PE composites by incorporation of a well-aligned, seamless graphene framework premodified with MXene nanosheets into the matrix. We demonstrate that the physical properties of the composites can be further improved at the same filler loading by nanoscale interface engineering: the formation of hydrogen bonds at the graphene/MXene interface and the development of a seamlessly interconnected graphene framework. The obtained PE composites exhibit an EMI shielding property of ∼61.0 dB and a thermal conductivity of 9.26 W m^-1 K^-1 at a low filler content (∼3 wt %, including ∼0.4 wt % MXene). Moreover, other thermoplastic composites with the same results can also be produced based on our method. Our study provides an idea toward rational design of the filler interface to prepare high-performance polymer composites for use in microelectronics and microsystems.

Metformin Ameliorates Hepatic Steatosis induced by olanzapine through inhibiting LXRα/PCSK9 pathway

Studies have confirmed that olanzapine, the mainstay treatment for schizophrenia, triggers metabolic diseases, including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, the etiology of olanzapine-induced NAFLD is poorly understood. Proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin type 9 (PCSK9) is involved in NAFLD pathogenesis, and metformin can significantly decrease circulating PCSK9. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of PCSK9 and explore the therapeutic effect of metformin for olanzapine-associated NAFLD. Olanzapine significantly upregulated PCSK9 and promoted lipid accumulation in mouse livers and HepG2 and AML12 cells. Metformin ameliorated these pathological alterations. PCSK9 upstream regulator liver X receptor α (LXRα) was significantly upregulated in olanzapine-induced NAFLD. LXRα antagonist treatment and LXRα overexpression resulted in a decrease and increase of PCSK9, respectively. Hepatic lipogenesis-associated genes FAS and SCD1 were significantly upregulated in olanzapine-induced NAFLD mice and HepG2 cells overexpressing PCSK9, and genes related to lipid β-oxidation (SCAD and PPARα) were downregulated, while metformin reversed these changes. In addition, we found that LXRα overexpression compromised the effect of metformin on PCSK9 levels and intracellular lipid droplet formation. Taken together, our findings suggest that olanzapine enhances hepatic PCSK9 expression by upregulating LXRα, thereby increasing FAS and SCD1 expression as well as decreasing SCAD and PPARα, and promoting lipid accumulation, and, subsequently, NAFLD, which is ameliorated by metformin.