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"Liu, Jingfang"
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In a future where the world is roughly divided into two factions, the Pacific League of Nations and the Atlantic Division of Nations, tensions are high as each side waits for the other to make a move. But neither side is prepared for a powerful third party that has apparently been an influential presence on Earth for thousands of years, and just might be making a reappearance very soon. With the realization that a highly intelligent alien race has been trying to send them messages, three rising scientists within the Pacific League of Nations form an uneasy alliance. Fueled by a curiosity to have their questions answered and a fear that other factions within their rival Atlantic Division of Nations would opt for a more aggressive and potentially disastrous military response, the three race to secure first contact with this extraterrestrial life they aren't quite convinced is a threat. Bolstered by recent evidence of alien visitations in the distant past, the three scientific minds must solve puzzles rooted within human antiquity, face off with their personal demons, and discover truths of the universe.
Book
Iron metabolism and type 2 diabetes mellitus: A meta‐analysis and systematic review
Aims/Introduction Iron metabolism can directly or indirectly affect the occurrence and development of type 2 diabetes. This meta‐analysis and systematic review aimed to analyze the association between serum iron metabolism indicators and type 2 diabetes. Materials and Methods The databases PubMed and Embase were searched for studies on the correlations between serum iron metabolism indicators (iron, ferritin, transferrin, hepcidin and soluble transferrin receptor) and type 2 diabetes since January 2006. Relevant data were extracted from the included studies, and meta‐analysis was carried out. Results A total of 12 case–control and cohort studies were analyzed. Of the 12 studies, 11 described the correlation between serum ferritin levels and type 2 diabetes. The median and high serum ferritin concentrations were significantly associated with the risks of type 2 diabetes (odds ratio [OR] 1.20, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.08–1.33 and OR 1.43, 95% CI 1.29–1.59, respectively). However, the low concentration was not correlated with the risk of type 2 diabetes (OR 0.99, 95% CI 0.89–1.11). No significant association was observed between serum soluble transferrin receptor and type 2 diabetes, whereas the soluble transferrin receptor‐to‐ferritin ratio was significantly inversely related to the risk of type 2 diabetes in the median and high ratio subgroups (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.51, 0.99 and OR 0.65, 95% CI 0.45–0.95). Conclusions The elevated serum ferritin was one of the risk factors for type 2 diabetes, and soluble transferrin receptor‐to‐ferritin ratio was inversely related to the risk of type 2 diabetes. A systematic review showed that serum transferrin and hepcidin might be directly or indirectly related to the development of diabetes. The present results showed that a higher level of serum ferritin was one of the risk factors for type 2 diabetes. Monitoring serum ferritin levels might be important in the diagnosis and treatment of type 2 diabetes. In addition, a systematic review showed that serum iron, transferrin, hepcidin and soluble transferrin receptor were also related to the development of diabetes.
Journal Article
Consumers’ satisfaction factors mining and sentiment analysis of B2C online pharmacy reviews
Background
In recent years, online pharmacies have been accepted by increasingly more consumers, and the prospects for online pharmacies are optimistic. This article explores the consumers’ satisfaction factors addressed in Business to Customer (B2C) online pharmacy reviews and analyzes the sentiments expressed in the reviews. The goal of this work is to help B2C online pharmacy enterprises identify consumers’ concerns, continuously improve the health services level.
Methods
This article was based on the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) topic model. From a third-party platform-based B2C online pharmacy and a proprietary B2C online pharmacy (JD Pharmacy and J1.COM, respectively), 136,630 pieces of over-the-counter (OTC) drug review data posted from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018 were selected as samples and used to explore the satisfaction factors of B2C online pharmacy consumers regarding the entire drug purchasing process. Then, the sentiments expressed in the drug reviews were analyzed with SnowNLP.
Result
Categorization of the 12 factors identified by LDA showed that 5 factors were related to logistics; these 5 factors, which also included the most drug reviews, made up 38.5% of the reviews. The number of factors related to drug prices was second, with 3 factors, and reviews of drug prices made up 25.5% of the reviews. Customer service and drug effects each had two related factors, and a smaller percentage of these reviews (13.95%) were related to drug effects. Consumers still maintain positive opinions of JD Pharmacy and J1.COM. However, some opinions on logistics and drug prices are expressed.
Conclusion
The most important task for online pharmacies is to improve logistics. It is better to develop self-built logistics. Both types of B2C online pharmacies can improve consumer viscosity by implementing marketing strategies. With regard to customer service, focusing on improving employees’ service attitudes is necessary.
Journal Article
Correlation of serum thyrotropin and thyroid hormone levels with diabetic kidney disease: a cross-sectional study
Objective
The relationship between thyrotropin (TSH), free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4) and diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is still controversial, and this study analyzed the correlation between TSH, FT3, FT4 and DKD in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
Methods
T2DM patients (1216) were divided into five groups based on serum TSH, FT3, and FT4 levels, differences in urinary albumin excretion rate (UACR), estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were compared. Binary logistic regression verified independent correlations among TSH, FT3, FT4 and UACR, eGFR. TSH and FT3 predictive values for DKD were analyzed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves.
Results
The prevalence of albuminuria with decreased eGFR was higher in T2DM patients with subclinical hypothyroidism and overt hypothyroidism than that in patients with normal thyroid function. TSH positively correlated with UACR (
r
= 0.133,
p
< 0.001) and positively correlated with eGFR (
r
= -0.218,
p
< 0.001), FT3 negatively correlated with UACR (
r
= -0.260,
p
< 0.001) and positively correlated with eGFR (
r
= 0.324,
p
< 0.001). With the change from the lower normal level to the increased level of TSH and the change from the higher normal level to the reduced level of FT3, the prevalence of albuminuria gradually increased, the prevalence of decreased eGFR gradually increased in TSH groups and FT3 groups. After adjusting for age, BMI, duration of diabetes, TPOAb, TGAb, smoking, drinking, hypertension, the use of anti-diabetic medications (metformin, sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors), HbA1c, CRP, TC, TG, LDL-C, and HDL-C, both TSH and FT3 correlated with increased UACR (TSH: OR 1.253,
p
= 0.001; FT3: OR 0.166,
p
< 0.001) and decreased eGFR (TSH: OR 1.245,
p
< 0.001, FT3: OR 0.579,
p
< 0.001), but this correlation of TSH with eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m
2
was not found in male. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) for FT3 was greater than that for TSH (FT3: 0.64; TSH: 0.61).
Conclusions
Increased TSH and reduced FT3 levels were associated with DKD in T2DM patients, but in a sex-dependent manner. FT3 had a higher predictive value for DKD.
Journal Article
Association between serum vitamin D and severe headache or migraine: A population-based analysis
Vitamin D is thought to play a role in the development of migraine, but the nature of the relationship is still not fully understood. Although some studies have shown an association between vitamin D deficiency and migraine, other studies have had inconsistent or inconclusive results. Therefore, further research is needed to better understand the relationship between vitamin D and migraine headaches.
We selected 9142 participants from the 2001-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). In our study, the term \"serum vitamin D\" refers to the concentration of 25OHD2 + 25OHD3 (nmol/L) in the blood. Migraine was assessed based on self-reports in the miscellaneous pain section of the NHANES questionnaire. Associations between vitamin D and the risk of migraine were examined using multiple logistic regression, smoothed curve fitting, and stratified analyses.
In our study, 20.53% of the participants suffered from migraine. The prevalence of migraine was higher in those with lower serum vitamin D levels. Participants in the highest quartile of serum vitamin D levels were found to have a 16% lower prevalence than those in the lowest quartile in the fully adjusted model (OR = 0.84, 95% CI 0.71-0.99). This result was supported by stratified analysis and smoothed curve fitting.
Our study showed a significant negative correlation between serum vitamin D levels and the prevalence of migraine in American adults.
Journal Article
Self-assembled polymeric nanosheet-anchored nanofiber membrane for emulsion separation
High-performance water-oil separation materials are essential to reduce environmental pollution and improve resource utilization towards achieving carbon neutrality; however, most present separation materials are limited by the monotonous pore structure and uncontrollable interface, resulting in low separation efficiency and flux. Here, we develop a facile electrohydrodynamic strategy, based on the electrospray-sheeting technique, to create self-assembled polymeric nanosheet-anchored nanofiber membranes, for high-performance emulsion separation. By manipulating relative humidity to fabricate stem-like nanofibers and regulating their topological structure to control the resulting microelectric field, polymer-charged droplets are induced to deform and then innovatively assemble into leaf-like nanosheets anchored on the nanofibers, thereby constructing the membrane with hierarchical stem-leaf-like nanoarchitecture. The nanoarchitecture with superwettable pore channels enables the obtained membrane to simultaneously achieve striking separation efficiency (>99.32%) and flux (up to 4179 L m
−2
h
−1
) for water-in-oil emulsions, all attributed to its supercapillary and demulsification-interception effects. This work may provide a distinctive platform for the development of advanced nanomaterials for filtration and purification.
It is challenging to design membranes for oil-water separations due to unfavorable pore structures. Here, the authors use an electrohydrodynamic strategy, designing a membrane with a stem-leaf architecture to separate oil-water emulsions.
Journal Article
Advanced glycated end-products modified transferrin mediates oxidative stress and ferroptosis in podocytes via advanced glycation end-product receptor in vitro
Previous studies have found the increased levels of transferrin (Tf) modified by advanced-glycation-end-products (AGE-Tf) in the serum of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and the kidneys of diabetic rats. The study aimed to investigate the effects of AGE-Tf on human podocytes in vitro. AGE-Tf was prepared by incubating Tf with different concentrations of glucose (0 mM, 5.6 mM, 11.1 mM, and 33.3 mM) in vitro. Podocytes were treated with AGE-Tf produced at different concentrations of glucose, and rescue experiments include AGE-Tf + deferoxamine mesylate (DFO), AGE-Tf + Ferrostatin-1 (Fer-1, inhibitors of ferroptosis), and AGE-Tf + advanced glycation end-product receptor (RAGE) antagonist peptide (RAP) groups. The total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione (GSH), lipid peroxidation (LPO), and malonic dialdehyde (MDA) were measured, and the expression levels of glutathione peroxidase 4 (
GPX4
), acyl-coenzyme A (CoA) synthetase long-chain family member 4 (
ACSL4
), and nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (
NRF2
) were analyzed. In vitro, with increasing glucose levels, the degree of glycation of Tf increased gradually, and the total iron binding capacity decreased gradually. When podocytes were treated by AGE-Tf, podocyte activity decreased, and apoptosis increased. Antioxidant capacity decreased, and LPO and ROS levels increased. The expression of
GPX4
,
NRF2,
and
SLC7A11
was down-regulated; the expression of
ACSL4
was up-regulated. Whereas the addition of Fer-1 or RAP reduced the effects of AGE-Tf on podocytes, including oxidative stress and ferroptosis, which were inhibited, and cell viability and apoptosis rate were partially improved. AGE-Tf may mediate oxidative stress and ferroptosis in podocytes via AGE/RAGE.
Journal Article
Efficacy of metformin therapy in patients with cancer: a meta-analysis of 22 randomised controlled trials
Background
To investigate whether metformin monotherapy or adjunctive therapy improves the prognosis in patients with any type of cancer compared to non-metformin users (age ≥18).
Methods
Databases (Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials) and clinical trial registries (
ClinicalTrials.gov
; the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform) were screened for randomized, controlled trials (RCT) reporting at least progression-free survival (PFS) and/or overall survival (OS). Main outcome measures included hazard ratios (HR), and combined HRs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using random-effects models.
Results
Of the 8419 records screened, 22 RCTs comprising 5943 participants were included. Pooled HRs were not statistically significant in both PFS (HR 0.97, 95% CI 0.82–1.15,
I
2
= 50%) and OS (HR 0.98, 95% CI 0.86–1.13,
I
2
= 33%) for patients with cancer between the metformin and control groups. Subgroup analyses demonstrated that metformin treatment was associated with a marginally significant improvement in PFS in reproductive system cancers (HR 0.86, 95% CI 0.74–1.00) and a significantly worse PFS in digestive system cancers (HR 1.45, 95% CI 1.03–2.04). The PFS or OS was observed consistently across maintenance dose, diabetes exclusion, median follow-up, risk of bias, and combined antitumoral therapies.
Conclusion
Metformin treatment was not associated with cancer-related mortality in adults compared with placebo or no treatment. However, metformin implied beneficial effects in the PFS of the patients with reproductive system cancers but was related to a worse PFS in digestive system cancers.
Systematic review registration
PROSPERO registration number CRD42022324672.
Journal Article
Health-Related Hot Topic Detection in Online Communities Using Text Clustering
Recently, health-related social media services, especially online health communities, have rapidly emerged. Patients with various health conditions participate in online health communities to share their experiences and exchange healthcare knowledge. Exploring hot topics in online health communities helps us better understand patients' needs and interest in health-related knowledge. However, the statistical topic analysis employed in previous studies is becoming impractical for processing the rapidly increasing amount of online data. Automatic topic detection based on document clustering is an alternative approach for extracting health-related hot topics in online communities. In addition to the keyword-based features used in traditional text clustering, we integrate medical domain-specific features to represent the messages posted in online health communities. Three disease discussion boards, including boards devoted to lung cancer, breast cancer and diabetes, from an online health community are used to test the effectiveness of topic detection. Experiment results demonstrate that health-related hot topics primarily include symptoms, examinations, drugs, procedures and complications. Further analysis reveals that there also exist some significant differences among the hot topics discussed on different types of disease discussion boards.
Journal Article