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The long-term physical and mental sequelae of COVID-19 are a growing public health concern, yet there is considerable uncertainty about their prevalence, persistence and predictors. We conducted a comprehensive, up-to-date meta-analysis of survivors’ health consequences and sequelae for COVID-19. PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library were searched through Sep 30th, 2021. Observational studies that reported the prevalence of sequelae of COVID-19 were included. Two reviewers independently undertook the data extraction and quality assessment. Of the 36,625 records identified, a total of 151 studies were included involving 1,285,407 participants from thirty-two countries. At least one sequelae symptom occurred in 50.1% (95% CI 45.4-54.8) of COVID-19 survivors for up to 12 months after infection. The most common investigation findings included abnormalities on lung CT (56.9%, 95% CI 46.2–67.3) and abnormal pulmonary function tests (45.6%, 95% CI 36.3–55.0), followed by generalized symptoms, such as fatigue (28.7%, 95% CI 21.0–37.0), psychiatric symptoms (19.7%, 95% CI 16.1–23.6) mainly depression (18.3%, 95% CI 13.3–23.8) and PTSD (17.9%, 95% CI 11.6–25.3), and neurological symptoms (18.7%, 95% CI 16.2–21.4), such as cognitive deficits (19.7%, 95% CI 8.8–33.4) and memory impairment (17.5%, 95% CI 8.1–29.6). Subgroup analysis showed that participants with a higher risk of long-term sequelae were older, mostly male, living in a high-income country, with more severe status at acute infection. Individuals with severe infection suffered more from PTSD, sleep disturbance, cognitive deficits, concentration impairment, and gustatory dysfunction. Survivors with mild infection had high burden of anxiety and memory impairment after recovery. Our findings suggest that after recovery from acute COVID-19, half of survivors still have a high burden of either physical or mental sequelae up to at least 12 months. It is important to provide urgent and appropriate prevention and intervention management to preclude persistent or emerging long-term sequelae and to promote the physical and psychiatric wellbeing of COVID-19 survivors.

On Taiwan’s offshore islands of Kinmen, the water supply infrastructure has experienced various challenges stemming from the physical and social conditions of islands. These conditions are related to islands’ distinct characteristics, such as smallness, boundedness, and remoteness, collectively referred to as islandness. This paper combines perspectives from infrastructure and island studies to examine how islandness-related effects have contributed to infrastructure failures. Drawing from interviews and document analysis, it explores the issues faced by the reservoirs and the desalination plant in Kinmen, including small storage and poor water quality, lack of energy and technical capacities, high production and maintenance costs, and poor seawater quality. Then, based on the above case study and a document analysis of water supply technical reports on Taiwan’s offshore islands, some shared islandness-related conditions are identified and categorized in relation to smallness, remoteness and peripherality, and ocean materiality. While offering generalizability, it is crucial to note that these conditions are not seen as determined but rather as relational and contingent upon other factors. Through such examination, the paper contributes to the discussion surrounding islandness and infrastructure breakdowns, shedding lights on the relational effects of islandness on water supply infrastructure.

Objective The objective of this meta-analysis is to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of the prevalence of endometriosis and adenomyosis, addressing the limitations of existing research data and evaluating the quality of the data. Methods Adhering to the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, this study systematically searched the Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, and Google Scholar databases from their inception until January 2025 for studies related to adenomyosis and endometriosis. All studies that specifically reported the prevalence of adenomyosis and endometriosis, or provided data enabling calculation of their prevalence, were included. The research examined the occurrence of different subtypes of adenomyosis and endometriosis, as well as frequency in various populations. Furthermore, subgroup analyses were conducted to synthesize findings related to distinct diagnostic criteria, gynecological symptoms, and the prevalence of these two conditions across diverse populations. Meta-analyses were performed using meta software packages, and random-effects models with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were employed to determine the combined prevalence of adenomyosis. Results A total of 198,925,726 women from 127 studies (59 on adenomyosis and 68 on endometriosis) were included in this meta-analysis. The prevalence of focal and diffuse adenomyosis was found to be 17% (95%CI, 7%-30%) and 15% (95%CI, 9%-23%), respectively. The prevalence of peritoneal endometriosis, ovarian endometriosis, and deep endometriosis was recorded at 6% (95%CI, 1%-15%), 13% (95%CI, 5%-24%), and 10% (95%CI, 2%-24%), respectively. The prevalence of adenomyosis and endometriosis among women experiencing infertility was 31% (95%CI, 10%-58%) and 38% (95%CI, 25%-51%), respectively. Furthermore, among patients experiencing gynecologic symptoms, the pooled of adenomyosis and endometriosis was 41%-49%, and 18%-42%, respectively. The global prevalence of adenomyosis and endometriosis in the general population worldwide is 1% (95%CI, 0%-2%), and 5% (95%CI, 2%-9%), respectively. Conclusions In conclusion, endometriosis occurs more frequently than adenomyosis across various populations. Notably, it affects nearly 50% of individuals experiencing gynecological symptoms. This study provides valuables support for public health management and emphasizes the importance of prompt intervention and treatment for related conditions.

In this study, two phenol compounds, magnolol and honokiol, were extracted from Magnolia officinalis and identified by LC-MS, 1H- and 13C-NMR. The magnolol and honokiol were shown to be effective against seven pathogenic fungi, including Alternaria alternata (Fr.) Keissl, Penicillium expansum (Link) Thom, Alternaria dauci f.sp. solani, Fusarium moniliforme J. Sheld, Fusarium oxysporum Schltdl., Valsa mali Miyabe & G. Yamada, and Rhizoctonia solani J.G. Kühn, with growth inhibition of more than 57%. We also investigated the mechanisms underlying the potential antifungal activity of magnolol and honokiol. The results showed that they inhibited the growth of A. alternata in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, magnolol and honokiol treatment resulted in distorted mycelia and increased the cell membrane permeability of A. alternata, as determined by conductivity measurements. These results suggest that magnolol and honokiol are potential antifungal agents for application against plant fungal diseases.

Long-term sequelae clustering phenotypes are important for precise health care management in COVID-19 survivors. We reported findings for 1000 survivors 20 months after diagnosis of COVID-19 in a community-based cohort in China. Sequelae symptoms were collected from a validated questionnaire covering 27 symptoms involved in five organ systems including self-reported physical condition, dyspnea, cognitive function and mental health. The generalized symptoms were reported with the highest rate (60.7%), followed by the mental (48.3%), cardiopulmonary (39.8%), neurological (37.1%; cognitive impairment, 15.6%), and digestive symptoms (19.1%). Four clusters were identified by latent class analysis: 44.9% no or mild group (cluster 1), 29.2% moderate group with mainly physical impairment (cluster 2), 9.6% moderate group with mainly cognitive and mental health impairment (cluster 3), and 16.3% severe group (cluster 4). Physical comorbidities or history of mental disorders, longer hospitalization periods and severe acute illness predicted severe group. For moderate group, adults less than 60 years, with physical comorbidities and severe acute illness were more likely to have physical symptoms, while adult women with longer hospitalization stays had increased risk of cognitive and mental health impairment. Overall, among more than half of community COVID-19 survivors who presented moderate or severe sequelae 20 months after recovery, three-tenth had physical vulnerability that may require physical therapy aiming to improve functioning, one-tenth mental or cognitive vulnerable cases need psychotherapy and cognitive rehabilitation, and one-sixth severe group needs multidisciplinary clinical management. The remaining half is free to clinical intervention. Our findings introduced an important framework to map numerous symptoms to precise classification of the clinical sequelae phenotype and provide information to guide future stratified recovery interventions.

The coumarin compound of osthole was extracted from Cnidium monnieri and identified by LC-MS and 1H- and 13C-NMR. Osthole was tested for anti-virus activity against tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) using the half-leaf method. The results showed that stronger antiviral activity on TMV infection appeared in Nicotiana glutinosa than that of eugenol and ningnanmycin, with inhibitory, protective, and curative effects of 72.57%, 70.26%, and 61.97%, respectively. Through observation of the TMV particles, we found that osthole could directly affect the viral particles. Correspondingly, the level of coat protein detected by Western blot was significantly reduced when the concentrations of osthole increased in tested plants compared to that of the control. These results suggest that osthole has anti-TMV activity and may be used as a biological reagent to control the plant virus in the half-leaf method.

Aspergillus species are the most common causative agents involved in otomycosis. In this study, 45 Aspergillus isolates were obtained from patients with otomycosis in western China during 2013–2016. The aim of this study is to identify the Aspergillus isolates to the species level by using β-tubulin gene sequencing and to evaluate their in vitro susceptibility to nine antifungal drugs: amphotericin B, itraconazole, voriconazole, posaconazole, ravuconazole, isavuconazole, caspofungin, micafungin and anidulafungin according to CLSI M38-A2. Our results indicate that A. tubingensis (18/45) is the predominant Aspergillus species causing ear infections in western China, which is three times more than its sibling species A. niger (6/45) and A. welwitschiae (2/45). Other detected species were A. fumigatus ( n  = 8), A. terreus ( n  = 7) and A. flavus ( n  = 4). Antifungal susceptibility data indicate that triazoles and echinocandins are active against the most Aspergillus isolates. There are no significant differences in the susceptibility among A. niger, A. tubingensis and A. welwitschiae to each of the antifungals tested. One azole-resistant A. fumigatus isolate with a TR34/L98H mutation in the CYP51A gene and one posaconazole-resistant A. terreus isolate presented among the studied isolates. In conclusion, A. tubingensis is the most prevalent Aspergillus species causing otomycosis in western China. Posaconazole and echinocandins are potential drugs for treatment of otomycosis due to Aspergillus ; however, in vivo efficacy remains to be determined.

The TGF-β signaling pathway is widely acknowledged for its role in various aspects of cancer progression, including cellular invasion, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and immunosuppression. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) and pharmacological agents that target TGF-β offer significant potential as therapeutic options for cancer. However, the specific role of TGF-β in prognostic assessment and treatment strategies for breast cancer (BC) remains unclear. The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database was utilized to develop a predictive model incorporating five TGF-β signaling-related genes (TSRGs). The GSE161529 dataset from the Gene Expression Omnibus was employed to conduct single-cell analyses aimed at further elucidating the characteristics of these TSRGs. Additionally, an unsupervised clustering algorithm was applied to categorize BC patients into two distinct groups based on the five TSRGs, with a focus on immune response and overall survival (OS). Further investigations were conducted to explore variations in pharmacotherapy and the tumor microenvironment across different patient cohorts and clusters. The predictive model for BC identified five TSRGs: FUT8, IFNG, ID3, KLF10, and PARD6A. Single-cell analysis revealed that IFNG is predominantly expressed in CD8+ T cells. Consensus clustering effectively categorized BC patients into two distinct clusters, with cluster B demonstrating a longer OS and a more favorable prognosis. Immunological assessments indicated a higher presence of immune checkpoints and immune cells in cluster B, suggesting a greater likelihood of responsiveness to ICIs. The findings of this study highlight the potential of the TGF-β signaling pathway for prognostic classification and the development of personalized treatment strategies for BC patients, thereby enhancing our understanding of its significance in BC prognosis.

Gossypium hirsutum and Gossypium barbadense are the widely cultivated tetraploid cottons around the world, which evolved great differences in the fiber yield and quality due to the independent domestication process. To reveal the genetic basis of the difference, we integrated 90 samples from ten time points during the fiber developmental period for investigating the dynamics of gene expression changes associated with fiber in G. hirsutum acc. TM-1 and G. barbadense cv. Hai7124 and acc. 3-79. Globally, 44,484 genes expressed in all three cultivars account for 61.14% of the total genes. About 61.39% ( N = 3,412) of the cotton transcription factors were involved in fiber development, which consisted of 58 cotton TF families. The differential analysis of intra- and interspecies showed that 3 DPA had more expression changes. To discover the genes with temporally changed expression profiles during the whole fiber development, 1,850 genes predominantly expressed in G. hirsutum and 1,050 in G. barbadense were identified, respectively. Based on the weighted gene co-expression network and time-course analysis, several candidate genes, mainly involved in the secondary cell wall synthesis and phytohormones, were identified in this study, underlying possibly the transcriptional regulation and molecular mechanisms of the fiber quality differences between G. barbadense and G. hirsu tum. The quantitative real-time PCR validation of the candidate genes was consistent with the RNA-seq data. Our study provides a strong rationale for the analysis of gene function and breeding of high-quality cotton.

Background and Objectives: The Chinese Dietary Guidelines (CDGs) were first released to the public in 1989 by the Chinese Nutrition Society (CNS). In 2016, the Ministry of Health commissioned the CNS to revise and publish new CDGs. Methods and Study Design: The CNS convened an expert committee of leaders in the fields of nutrition, epidemiology, public health, preventive medicine, and food science. The CDGs were revised according to the World Health Organization Handbook for Guideline Development procedures. The expert committee recommended key inclusions for the CDGs on the basis of the current status of public health and priority health challenges affecting the Chinese population, as well as the quality of scientific evidence. Results: The CDGs (2016) provide six key dietary recommendations for the general Chinese population aged 2 years and above. In addition to a newly revised Chinese Food Guide Pagoda, both the Chinese Food Guide Plate and Chinese Food Guide Abacus are newly created pictorial models in the CDGs (2016); the Chinese Food Guide Abacus is specifically designed for children. Seven additional dietary guidelines targeting specific populations are included; these guidelines emphasize the different physiological and nutritional requirements of particular populations, including dietary guidelines for vegetarians for the first time. Conclusions: The CDGs (2016) is an official document published by the National Health Commission of China. Its content highlights the current status of public health and offers advice to address health concerns faced by the Chinese population. The CDGs (2016) have been widely disseminated and accepted in the Chinese population; the National Nutrition Week is a major national event in which the CDG are used as its core to increase public awareness towards a healthy diet and lifestyle.