Explore the vast range of titles available.

A dry soil layer (DSL) is a common soil desiccation phenomenon that generally forms at a particular depth in the soil profile because of climatic factors and poor land management, and this phenomenon can influence the water cycle and has been observed on the Loess Plateau of China and other similar regions around the world. Therefore, an investigation of the DSL formation depth (DSLFD), thickness (DSLT) and mean water content (MWDSL) on the Loess Plateau can provide valuable information. This paper synthesized 69 recent publications (1,149 observations of DSLs from 73 sites) that focused on DSLs in this region, and the results indicated that DSLs are significantly affected by climatic and vegetation factors. The mean annual precipitation had a significant positive relationship with DSLFD (p = 0.0003) and MWDSL (p<0.0001) and a negative relationship with DSLT (p = 0.0071). Crops had the lowest DSLT and highest MWDSL values compared with other vegetation types. A significant correlation was observed between the occurrence of DSLs and the years since planting for grasses, shrubs, trees and orchards, and the severity of DSLs increased with increasing planting years and wheat yield. Our results suggest that optimizing land-use management can mitigate DSL formation and development on the Loess Plateau. Understanding the dominant factors affecting DSLs will provide information for use in guidelines for the sustainable development of economies and restoration of natural environments experiencing water deficiencies.

This study aimed to explore the relationship between biochemical profiles and the risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) through a cross-sectional observational analysis. We examined data of U. S. population from the 2005–2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database. Student’s t-test, multivariable logistic regression, Pearson’s correlation, restricted cubic spline (RCS) model, and linear regression were applied to analyze the underlying relationship between biochemical profiles and the AMD risk, through comparing data between the non-AMD and AMD subgroups. Multivariable logistic regression, adjusted for age and demographic factors, showed no significant associations between the AMD risk and the levets of specific biochemical parameters (P > 0.05). Pearson’s correlation revealed a positive linear relationship between age and total bilirubin, uric acid in the non-AMD subgroup (P < 0.05), but no such liner association was found in the AMD subgroup (P > 0.05). The RCS model confirmed no non-linear relationships presented between these variables in the AMD subgroup. In addition, without age adjustment, significant associations were found between total bilirubin, uric acid, and the AMD presence (P < 0.05). Biochemical profiles, after adjusting for age, did not significantly influence the AMD risk. However, total bilirubin and uric acid might potentially be related to the AMD presence. Our findings suggest a need for further research to clarify the role of these biomarkers in AMD development.

Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a newly emerging infectious disease and rapidly escalating epidemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The pathogenesis of COVID-19 remains to be elucidated. We aimed to clarify correlation of systemic inflammation with disease severity and outcomes in COVID-19 patients. Methods In this retrospective study, baseline characteristics, laboratory findings, and treatments were compared among 317 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 patients with moderate, severe, or critically ill form of the disease. Moreover, the longitudinal changes of serum cytokines, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), and hsCRP to lymphocyte count ratio (hsCRP/L) as well as their associations with disease severity and outcomes were investigated in 68 COVID-19 patients. Results Within 24 h of admission, the critically ill patients showed higher concentrations of inflammatory markers including serum soluble interleukin (IL)-2 receptor, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), ferritin, procalcitonin, LDH, hsCRP, and hsCRP/L than patients with severe or moderate disease. The severe cases displayed the similar response patterns when compared with moderate cases. The longitudinal assays showed the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, LDH, hsCRP, and hsCRP/L gradually declined within 10 days post admission in moderate, severe cases or those who survived. However, there was no significant reduction in cytokines, LDH, hsCRP, and hsCRP/L levels in critically ill or deceased patients throughout the course of illness. Compared with female patients, male cases showed higher serum concentrations of soluble IL-2R, IL-6, ferritin, procalcitonin, LDH, and hsCRP. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that IL-6 > 50 pg/mL and LDH > 400 U/L on admission were independently associated with disease severity in patients with COVID-19. Conclusion Exuberant inflammatory responses within 24 h of admission in patients with COVID-19 may correlate with disease severity. SARS-CoV-2 infection appears to elicit a sex-based differential immune response. IL-6 and LDH were independent predictive parameters for assessing the severity of COVID-19. An early decline of these inflammation markers may be associated with better outcomes.

To investigate the prevalence and influencing factors of Demodex folliculorum (DF) in the eyelashes of healthy young males. An epidemiological cross-sectional prevalence study was conducted. We conducted visual acuity, eye-related examination, eyelash microscopic examination and DF count of recruits in Fujian Province in 2019. The presence of DF was analyzed according to age, keratorefractive surgery, annual household income, educational level, long-term residence, sleep time, time of using electronic products, smoking and drinking habit. A total of 2253 healthy young males (aged 17–24 years) were studied for the presence of DF within eyelash follicles. The total prevalence of DF was 20.73% in our study. Subjects with history of keratorefractive surgery had a statistically significant increase in the prevalence of DF ( P  < 0.001). The prevalence of DF was higher in subjects with ocular symptoms than in those without symptoms ( P  < 0.05). Factors such as the educational level and so on we analyzed had no significant correlation with the prevalence of DF (all P  > 0.05). According to the multivariate logistic regression analysis, the history of keratorefractive surgery was the risk factors of DF infection ( P  < 0.001), and the risk of infection was 1.437 times higher in the population with the history of keratorefractive surgery than in the population without. There was no correlation between ocular discomfort and DF infection ( P  > 0.05). The prevalence of DF in eyelash follicles in healthy young males was relatively high. The history of keratorefractive surgery was an important risk factor for the infection.

Exacerbation of macrophage-mediated inflammation contributes to pathogenesis of various inflammatory diseases, but the immunometabolic programs underlying regulation of macrophage activation are unclear. Here we show that V-set immunoglobulin-domain-containing 4 (VSIG4), a B7 family-related protein that is expressed by resting macrophages, inhibits macrophage activation in response to lipopolysaccharide. Vsig4 −/− mice are susceptible to high-fat diet-caused obesity and murine hepatitis virus strain-3 (MHV-3)-induced fulminant hepatitis due to excessive macrophage-dependent inflammation. VSIG4 activates the PI3K/Akt–STAT3 pathway, leading to pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase-2 (PDK2) upregulation and subsequent phosphorylation of pyruvate dehydrogenase, which results in reduction in pyruvate/acetyl-CoA conversion, mitochondrial reactive oxygen species secretion, and macrophage inhibition. Conversely, interruption of Vsig4 or Pdk2 promotes inflammation. Forced expression of Vsig4 in mice ameliorates MHV-3-induced viral fulminant hepatitis. These data show that VSIG4 negatively regulates macrophage activation by reprogramming mitochondrial pyruvate metabolism. Macrophage differentiation and inflammatory function are controlled by cell metabolism. Here, the authors use a viral hepatitis model and a high-fat diet model of insulin resistance to show how VSIG4 inhibits inflammatory macrophage activation by modulating mitochondrial pyruvate metabolism.

To elucidate the contributions of M-cone to the negative off-response of rat Electroretinogram (ERG) using specific drugs and spontaneous mutation rat models. The ON/OFF responses of ERG were evoked by long duration flash (200 ms) pre or post the application of 2-amino-4-phosphonobutyric acid (APB), cis-piperidine-2,3-dicarboxylic acid (PDA) or BaCl 2 to the Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. Furthermore, the ON/OFF responses of other two types of mutation rats, the middle-wavelength opsin cone dysfunction (MCD) rats and congenital stationary night blindness (CSNB) rats, were recorded. Typical scotopic and photopic ON/OFF responses were recorded in SD rats. At light offset, the OFF response showed a rapid negative deflection, then the retinal potential slowly returned to baseline from the trough of the negative off-response. The negative off-response was completely eliminated by the intravitreal injection of 400 µM APB. The amplitude of the negative off-response was reduced by the application of 5 mM PDA. However, the off component was not blocked by the application of 50 µM BaCl 2 . In addition, distinct differences of OFF response were found among MCD, CSNB and SD rats. The scotopic ON/OFF ERG of the MCD and CSNB rats showed no obvious negative off component at light offset, while the negative off component of photopic ON/OFF ERG was found in the CSNB rats, though with lower amplitude. The negative off-response of rat ERGs is not the off component of M-wave: a negative potential change at stimulus onset or offset. M-cone and the depolarizing bipolar cell play a central role in the signal transmission of this negative off-response.

The practice of cover crops has gained popularity as a strategy to improve agricultural sustainability, but its full potential is often limited by environmental trade-offs. Using meta-analytic and data-driven quantifications of 2302 observations, we optimized cover crop practices and evaluated their benefits for global agroecosystems. Cover crops have historically boosted crop yields, soil carbon storage, and stability, but also stimulated greenhouse gas emissions. However, combining them with long-term implementation (five years or more) and climate-smart practices (such as no-tillage) can enhance these services synergistically. A biculture of legume and non-legume cover crops, terminated 25 days before planting the next crop and followed by residue mulching, is the optimal portfolio. Such optimized practices are projected to increase agroecosystem multiservices by 1.25%, equivalent to annual gains of 97.7 million metric tons in crop production, 21.7 billion metric tons in carbon dioxide sequestration, and 2.41 billion metric tons in soil erosion reduction. By 2100, the continued implementation of optimized practices could mitigate climate-related yield losses and contribute to climate neutrality and soil stabilization, especially in harsh and underdeveloped areas. These findings underscore the promising potential of optimized cover crop practices to achieve the synergy in food security and environmental protection. Cover crops can improve agricultural sustainability. In this meta-analysis, the authors find that a biculture of legume and non-legume cover crops is optimal and may promote multiple agroecosystem services while mitigating climate-related yield losses by 2100.

Microorganisms of the soil‐root continuum play key roles in ecosystem function. The Loess Plateau is well known for its severe soil erosion and thick loess worldwide, where mean annual precipitation (MAP) and soil nutrients decrease from the southeast to the northwest. However, the relative influence of environmental factors on the microbial community in four microhabitats (bulk soil, rhizosphere, rhizoplane, and endosphere) in the soil‐root continuum along the environmental gradient in the Loess Plateau remains unclear. In this study, we investigated 82 field sites from warm‐temperate to desert grasslands across the Loess Plateau, China, to assess the bacterial diversity, composition, community assembly, and co‐occurrence networks in the soil‐root continuum along an environmental gradient using bacterial 16S recombinant DNA amplicon sequencing. We discovered that the microhabitats explained the largest source of variations in the bacterial diversity and community composition in this region. Environmental factors (e.g., MAP, soil organic carbon, and pH) impacted the soil, rhizosphere, and rhizoplane bacterial communities, but their effects on the bacterial community decreased with increased proximity to roots from the soil to the rhizoplane, and the MAP enlarged the dissimilarity of microbial communities from the rhizosphere and rhizoplane to bulk soil. Additionally, stochastic assembly processes drove the endosphere communities, whereas the soil, rhizosphere, and rhizoplane communities were governed primarily by the variable selection of deterministic processes, which showed increased importance from warm‐temperate to desert grasslands. Moreover, the properties of the microbial networks in the rhizoplane community indicate more stable networks in desert grasslands, likely conferring the resistance of microbial communities in higher stress environments. Collectively, our results showed that the bacterial communities in the soil‐root continuum had different sensitivities and assembly mechanisms along an environmental gradient. These patterns are shaped simultaneously by the intertwined dimensions of proximity to roots and environmental stress change in the Loess Plateau. Changes in microbes in the soil‐root continuum along an environmental gradient were investigated. The soil, rhizosphere and rhizoplane communities were governed by deterministic processes. Environmental stress enlarged the dissimilarity of microbial communities in the soil‐root continuum. Root‐associated microbiomes did not destabilize at locations with higher environmental stress. Highlights Changes in microbes in the soil‐root continuum along an environmental gradient were investigated. The soil, rhizosphere and rhizoplane communities were governed by deterministic processes. Environmental stress enlarged the dissimilarity of microbial communities in the soil‐root continuum. Root‐associated microbiomes did not destabilize at locations with higher environmental stress.

Leaf gas exchange is closely associated with water relations; however, less attention has been given to this relationship over successive drought events. Dynamic changes in gas exchange and water potential in the seedlings of two woody species, Amorpha fruticosa and Robinia pseudoacacia , were monitored during recurrent drought. The pre-dawn leaf water potential declined in parallel with gas exchange in both species, and sharp declines in gas exchange occurred with decreasing water potential. A significant correlation between pre-dawn water potential and gas exchange was observed in both species and showed a right shift in R. pseudoacacia in the second drought. The results suggested that stomatal closure in early drought was mediated mainly by elevated foliar abscisic acid (ABA) in R. pseudoacacia , while a shift from ABA-regulated to leaf-water-potential-driven stomatal closure was observed in A. fruticosa . After re-watering, the pre-dawn water potential recovered quickly, whereas stomatal conductance did not fully recover from drought in R. pseudoacacia , which affected the ability to tightly control transpiration post-drought. The dynamics of recovery from drought suggest that stomatal behavior post-drought may be restricted mainly by hydraulic factors, but non-hydraulic factors may also be involved in R. pseudoacacia .

Oxidative stress (OS) and endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) are the major factors underlying photoreceptor degeneration. Lutein, RR-zeaxanthin (3R,3’R-zeaxanthin) and RS (meso)-zeaxanthin (3R,3’S-RS- zeaxanthin) (L/Zi) could protect against cell damage by ameliorating OS in retina. In this study, we examined the effect of L/Zi supplementation in a mouse model of photoreceptor degeneration and investigated whether the treatment of L/Zi ameliorated OS and ERS. BALB/cJ mice after light exposure were used as the animal model. The protective effects of L/Zi were observed by electroretinography (ERG) and terminal deoxyuridine triphosphate nick-end labeling (TUNEL) analysis. The underlying mechanisms related to OS and ERS were explored by Western blotting. After L/Zi treatment, the ERG amplitudes were significantly higher, and the number of TUNEL-positive cells was significantly reduced compared to that of the vehicle group. Western blotting results revealed that OS was ameliorated according to the significant downregulation of phosphorylated c-Jun N-terminal kinase (p-JNK), and significant upregulation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2). In addition, ERS was reduced according to the significant downregulation of 78 kDa glucose-regulated protein (GRP78), phosphorylated protein kinase RNA-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (p-PERK), activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) and activating transcription factor (ATF6). Our data shows that L/Zi provided functional and morphological preservation of photoreceptors against light damage, which is probably related to its mitigation of oxidative and endoplasmic reticulum stress.