Explore the vast range of titles available.

ObjectivesTo examine the length and dispersion level of lifespan for the subnational populations in China, identify the urban–rural gap and sex differences, and analyse the contribution made by causes of death.SettingCause-specific mortality data extracted from the Chinese Disease Surveillance Points system, grouped by sex and urban/rural residence.Primary outcome measuresLife expectancy and lifespan disparity are used to measure the length and dispersion level of lifespan, respectively. Cause-specific contributions are obtained by contrasting cause-deleted life expectancy and lifespan disparities with observed values.ParticipantsAggregated national data gathered from over 605 surveillance points across China, covering over 264 million people by 2016 (about 19.14% of the total Chinese population).ResultsIn the decade under observation, all subpopulations in China, by area and sex, experienced increases in life expectancy and decreases in lifespan disparity, while causes of deaths contributed differently. For example, based on the 2016 data, if cardiovascular diseases were deleted, there would be an increase in life expectancy that ranges from 5.59 years for urban males to 6.69 years for rural females. However, also lifespan disparity would increase, ranging from 0.81 years for urban females to 1.37 years for rural males.ConclusionsIn China, the urban–rural gaps in both life expectancy and lifespan disparity are shrinking as the rural residents are catching up fast, while the gender gaps remain large, and even widening. Causes of death with different age distribution patterns contribute differently to the level and direction of the urban–rural and sex differentials in life expectancy and lifespan disparity. Sex differentials were observed in cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, lung and liver cancers, and external causes, while urban–rural differences were found in lung and breast cancers, and external causes.

Purpose Chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) causes lung injury but the mechanism is unclear. Ferroptosis is a novel form of programmed cell death. In this research, we attempted to explore the role of ferroptosis in CIH-induced lung injury both in vitro and in vivo. Methods Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly separated into control group, CIH group and CIH + ferrostatin-1 group (CIH + Fer-1). Rats in the CIH group and CIH + Fer-1 group were exposed to intermittent hypoxia for 12 weeks. Human bronchial epithelial cell line (BEAS-2B) was cultivated for 24 h in either conventional culture medium or under CIH conditions. Fer-1 was applied to observe its treatment effects. Histological changes were evaluated by Hematoxylin–eosin (HE) staining and masson staining. The expression levels of Acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain family member 4 (ACSL4), glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor α (TNFα) were detected via qRT-PCR or Western blot. Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) was used to assess cell viability. The apoptotic rate and reactive oxygen species (ROS) was calculated by flow cytometry. Results Histology showed that CIH treatment induced lung injury and pulmonary fibrosis in lung tissue. After Fer-1 treatment, the pathological changes caused by CIH alleviated. The mRNA and protein levels of GPX4 decreased significantly in lung tissues of CIH-treated rats and BEAS-2B, ( p  < 0.05). The mRNA and protein levels of ACSL4 increased significantly in lung tissues of CIH-treated rats and BEAS-2B, ( p  < 0.05). The mRNA levels of IL-6 and TNFα in BEAS-2B increased after CIH treatment, ( p  < 0.05). Cell viability decreased, apoptosis rate and ROS increased in CIH-treated BEAS-2B, ( p  < 0.05). Cotreatment with Fer-1 reversed CIH-induced apoptosis, cell viability, ROS accumulation, mRNA and protein levels of GPX4, ACSL4, IL-6 and TNFα both in vitro and in vivo ( p  < 0.05). Conclusions Ferroptosis occurred in CIH-induced lung injury, both in vitro and in vivo. The ferroptosis inhibitor Fer-1 alleviated cell injury and ferroptosis in CIH-treated BEAS-2B and lung tissues of rats.

Developing highly active and robust catalysts remains a critical challenge for the industrial realization and implementation of nitrate reduction. Here, we proposed a screw dislocation-mediated three-dimensional (3D) printing strategy for scalable, integrated manufacturing of metamaterial catalysts. Specifically, screw dislocation was introduced into the 3D printing process to mediate the simultaneous synthesis of 3D architecture and chiral surface nanostructures, effectively eliminating conventional heterointerfaces. Additionally, severe strain effects induced by dislocation multiplication in curved spaces enhance intrinsic catalytic activity by promoting NO 3 − adsorption and lowering the energy barrier of NO 3 − -to-NH 3 conversion. Consequently, the FeCoNi dual-scale shell-lattice metamaterials with high dislocation density achieve a Faraday efficiency of 95.4%, an NH 3 yield rate of 20.58 mg h −1 cm −2 , and long-term stability exceeding 500 hours. A flow-through electrolyzer coupled with an acid absorption unit successfully produced NH 4 Cl fertilizer products. Our work opens a new perspective for advancing 3D printing technology in catalysis applications. Developing highly active and robust catalysts remains a challenge for the implementation of nitrate reduction. The authors introduce a screw dislocation-mediated 3D printing strategy to fabricate curvature-controlled electrodes with 3D lattice strain, enhancing nitrate reduction performance.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) ranks as the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) RNA methylation is the most common modification of messenger RNAs (mRNAs). The prognosis of HCC patients with metastasis remains poor. Our study aimed to elucidate the regulatory role of m6A on HCC metastasis. All HCC patients were enrolled from The Affiliated Huai'an No. 1 People's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. The expression levels of gene were tested by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), Western blot, or immunohistochemistry (IHC) analysis. Wound healing assay, Transwell invasion assay, and lung metastasis model were implemented to investigate the migration and invasion ability of HCC cells. Candidate targets were selected by a comprehensive analysis of RNA-sequencing and m6A-sequencing of HepG2 cells. In this study, we demonstrated that METTL14 was significantly downregulated in HCC and significantly associated with the prognosis of HCC patients. METTL14 knockdown promoted the migration, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of HCC cells in vitro and in vivo. In addition, overlapping RNA-sequencing and m6A-sequencing data, we identified EGFR as a direct target of METTL14 in HCC. Mechanistically, METTL14 was found to inhibit HCC cell migration, invasion, and EMT through modulating EGFR/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway in an m6A-dependent manner. Targeting METTL14/EGFR/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway may facilitate the development of a new treatment strategy against the metastasis of HCC.

Nitrate (NO3−) is a prominent atmospheric pollutant and a key chemical constituent of snow and ice, which plays a crucial role in the atmosphere and significantly impacts regional climate and environment conditions through a series of complex chemical processes. By summarizing the recent research progress on the nitrate chemical process (particularly on the isotopic measurements of NO3− (δ15N, Δ17O and δ18O)) in atmosphere and glacier snow, this study mainly investigated the chemical compositions and chemical processes, formation pathways, and photochemical reactions of nitrate in snow and atmosphere. Our results identified that the main ways of atmospheric nitrate formation are the hydrolysis of N2O5 and the reaction of ·OH with NO2; the spatial distribution of Δ17O and δ18O values of atmospheric nitrate have a significant latitudinal trend between 30° N–60° N; the study of stable isotopes (δ15N and δ18O) and the oxygen isotope anomaly (Δ17O) of nitrate have mainly been carried out over the densely populated and coastal mega cities; there exist significant gaps in the study of chemistry processes of nitrate in snow and ice and the air–snow interfaces across glaciated regions. This study provides a basic reference for more robust observations and research of nitrate in glacier areas in the future.

Purpose The influences of nutrition in childhood on puberty onset could have sustained consequences for health and wellbeing later in life. The aim of this study was to investigate the prospective association of diet quality prior to puberty with the timing of puberty onset. Methods We considered data from 3983 SCCNG (Southwest China Childhood Nutrition and Growth) study participants with dietary data, anthropometric measurement, and information on potential confounders at their baseline assessment (mean age: 7.1 years for girls and 7.3 years for boys; mean length of follow-up was 4.2 years). Cox proportional hazard regression estimating hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to examine the relationship between diet quality and puberty onset. Dietary intake at baseline was assessed using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Diet quality was determined using the Chinese Children Dietary Index (CCDI) which measures adherence to current dietary recommendations (theoretical range: 0–160 points). Age at Tanner stage 2 for breast/genital development (B2/G2), menarche or voice break (M/VB) were used as pubertal markers. Results The CCDI score ranged from 56.2 to 136.3 for girls and 46.1–131.5 for boys. Pubertal markers consistently indicate that girls and boys with higher diet quality were more likely to enter their puberty later than their counterparts with lower CCDI scores (higher vs. lower CCDI tertiles: adjusted HR for age at B2: 0.85 (95% CI, 0.81–0.94), p for trend = 0.02; G2: 0.86 (95% CI,0.80–0.96), p for trend = 0.02; M: 0.86 (95% CI,0.80–0.95), p for trend = 0.02; VB: 0.86 (95% CI,0.79–0.98), p for trend = 0.03), after adjustment for paternal education level, baseline energy intake, and pre-pubertal body fat. Conclusions Our data suggested a later puberty onset and later timing of progressed puberty stages in children with a high diet quality, which were independent of pre-pubertal body fat.

PurposeIncreasing medical researche shows that endothelial dysfunction is one of the important causes of various cardiovascular diseases related to chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH). This study aimed to identify target proteins in CIH-related vascular dysfunction.MethodsA comparative proteomics analysis was conducted in aortic samples of rats treated with CIH and controls with normoxia. Bioinformatics analyses were performed to determine the potential roles of major proteins. The expressions of target proteins were measured by western blotting. Cell apoptotic ratio was detected by flow cytometer.ResultsA total of 3,593 proteins in aortic tissues of rats were quantified. Ninety-two upregulated proteins and 468 downregulated proteins were identified when the cutoff of fold change was set at 1.5 (CIH vs. normoxia). The results of bioinformatics analysis revealed that the differentially expressed proteins were enriched in the processes of energy metabolism and lipid metabolism. The reduced expression level of peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor γ (PPARγ) protein was identified in thoracic aortic tissues of rats with CIH by proteomics analysis and western blotting. In intermittent hypoxia-treated rat aortic endothelial cells, PPARγ protein levels were reduced, and the apoptosis rate and caspase-3 and Bax protein levels were markedly elevated. Importantly, forced expression of PPARγ by rosiglitazone in intermittent hypoxia-treated rat aortic endothelial cells not only attenuated caspase-3 and Bax protein levels but also reduced the rate of apoptosis.ConclusionPPARγ is critical in endothelial dysfunction of rats with CIH. Additional studies on these differentially expressed proteins associated with CIH-related endothelial dysfunction are necessary.

Objective To investigate the associations between serum uric acid (UA) trajectories and the risk of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) in large cohort survey 2019–2021. Methods This cohort health survey included 11,644 participants without MASLD before January 1, 2021. Among them, 5578 (47.90%) were men and 6066 (52.10%) were women. The group-based trajectory model method was applied to identify serum UA trajectories from January 1, 2019, to December 30, 2021. New-onset MASLD events in 2021 were treated as outcomes. A logistic regression model was used to assess associations between UA trajectories and incidence of MASLD. Results Four distinct serum UA trajectories among both sexes were identified: “low-stable” trajectory 1 ( n  = 783 men; n  = 1143 women), “moderate–moderate increasing” trajectory 2 ( n  = 2794 men; n  = 3266 women), “moderate high–moderate increasing” trajectory 3 ( n  = 1660 men; n  = 1464 women), and “high-increasing” trajectory 4 ( n  = 341 men; n  = 193 women). During the 3-year follow-up period, 840 (15.06%) men and 408 (6.72%) women developed MASLD, respectively. Compared with the trajectory 1 group, the trajectory 4 group had the highest risk (odds ration [OR] 2.99 [95% confidence interval {CI} 1.70, 5.24] for men; OR 2.37 [95% CI 1.04, 5.33] for women), followed by the trajectory 3 (OR 2.23 [95% CI 1.52, 3.30] for men; OR 2.37 [95% CI 1.45, 3.92] for women) and trajectory 2 (OR 1.43 [95% CI 1.07, 1.94] for men; OR 1.37 [95% CI 0.93, 2.03] for women) groups. Conclusions High serum UA trajectories were independent risk factors for MASLD in both sexes, which is critical for informing prevention and treatment strategies in public health initiatives and clinical practice.

We aim to explore the relationship between nocturnal sleep duration (NSD) and midday nap duration (MND) with body composition among Southwest Chinese adults. Data on sleep duration of 3145 adults in Southwest China (59.4% women) were obtained between 2014 and 2015 through questionnaires. Height, weight, and waist circumference (WC) were measured to calculate body composition (body mass index (BMI), percentage of body fat (%BF), and fat mass index (FMI)). Linear regression models were used to assess gender-specific associations between NSD and body composition. The relationship between MND with the odds of overweight and central obesity has been evaluated by logistic regression models. NSD has the inverse relation with males' BMI, WC, %BF and FMI after adjusting for all covariates (all P <0.0007), exclusive of females' (all P >0.4). After adjustment for potential confounders, compared to the subjects in the no midday nap group, the subjects who napped 0.1-1 hour were independently associated with a less prevalence of overweight in both women (OR: 0.72, 95%CI: 0.55-0.95) and men (OR: 0.71, 95%CI: 0.52-0.98). MND was not associated with central obesity. Among Southwest Chinese adults, lower NSD might be related to higher BMI, WC, %BF and FMI among men. Additionally, MND is associated with overweight in adults.

BackgroundThere are few studies of nutritional and genetic factors and their interactions on the risk of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) among Chinese adults.ObjectiveOur aim for the Nutrition and Health in Southwest China (NHSC) study is to investigate the impact of diet, lifestyle, genetic background, and their interactions on NCDs among adults in Southwest China.MethodsThe NSHC is a prospective cohort study initiated in winter 2013. The baseline data collection was completed in December 2018, and follow-ups are conducted every 2 years. Information on genomics, anthropometry, nutrition, eating behaviors, physical activity, depression and mental disorders, clinical and biochemical examinations, and lifestyles was collected.Results7926 adults completed the baseline questionnaire. The average age of participants was 42.6 (9.8) years at study enrollment. More than half were female, 37.2% had achieved more than 12 years of education, and 49.3% of them came from family income >35,000 Yuan. Our analyses of the baseline data suggested that adults with greater dietary energy density appeared to have greater body mass index, fat mass index, fat-free mass index and percentage body fat, and that participants with a higher level of dietary glycemic index, glycemic load, or serum 25(OH)D had a less favorable glucose homeostasis. In addition, spending less time watching television and having a healthy eating pattern may play significant roles in later cellular aging.ConclusionsIn conclusion, the NHSC cohort provides valuable data for investigations of the relevance of gene, nutrition, lifestyles, and their interactions on NCDs among southwestern Chinese adults.