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Currently, the development of digital finance in China’s rural areas remains in its early stages. The proportion of rural households participating in digital finance and the types of participation are relatively low. This hinders the realization of digital finance’s inclusive effects. This paper examines the influence of migrant work experience on participation in digital financial of rural households using data from the China Household Finance Survey (CHFS). The findings suggest that migrant work experience significantly increases the probability of rural households’ digital financial participation and increases the breadth of participation. Heterogeneity analysis finds that migrant work experience promotes digital financial participation more for rural households with migrant formal work experience, migrant entrepreneurial experience, completion of compulsory education, and long-tail groups. Mechanism analysis finds that migrant work experience can influence rural households’ digital financial participation by improving their financial literacy and broadening their social networks.

Although exposure to cigarette smoking and air pollution is common, the current prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is unknown in the Chinese adult population. We conducted the China Pulmonary Health (CPH) study to assess the prevalence and risk factors of COPD in China. The CPH study is a cross-sectional study in a nationally representative sample of adults aged 20 years or older from ten provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities in mainland China. All participants underwent a post-bronchodilator pulmonary function test. COPD was diagnosed according to 2017 Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) criteria. Between June, 2012, and May, 2015, 57 779 individuals were invited to participate, of whom 50 991 (21 446 men and 29 545 women) had reliable post-bronchodilator results and were included in the final analysis. The overall prevalence of spirometry-defined COPD was 8·6% (95% CI 7·5–9·9), accounting for 99·9 (95% CI 76·3–135·7) million people with COPD in China. Prevalence was higher in men (11·9%, 95% CI 10·2–13·8) than in women (5·4%, 4·6–6·2; p<0·0001 for sex difference) and in people aged 40 years or older (13·7%, 12·1–15·5) than in those aged 20–39 years (2·1%, 1·4–3·2; p<0·0001 for age difference). Only 12·0% (95% CI 8·1–17·4) of people with COPD reported a previous pulmonary function test. Risk factors for COPD included smoking exposure of 20 pack-years or more (odds ratio [OR] 1·95, 95% CI 1·53–2·47), exposure to annual mean particulate matter with a diameter less than 2·5 μm of 50–74 μg/m3 (1·85, 1·23–2·77) or 75 μg/m3 or higher (2·00, 1·36–2·92), underweight (body-mass index <18·5 kg/m2; 1·43, 1·03–1·97), sometimes childhood chronic cough (1·48, 1·14–1·93) or frequent cough (2·57, 2·01–3·29), and parental history of respiratory diseases (1·40, 1·23–1·60). A lower risk of COPD was associated with middle or high school education (OR 0·76, 95% CI 0·64–0·90) and college or higher education (0·47, 0·33–0·66). Spirometry-defined COPD is highly prevalent in the Chinese adult population. Cigarette smoking, ambient air pollution, underweight, childhood chronic cough, parental history of respiratory diseases, and low education are major risk factors for COPD. Prevention and early detection of COPD using spirometry should be a public health priority in China to reduce COPD-related morbidity and mortality. Ministry of Health and Ministry of Science and Technology of China.

The tower crane operators play a crucial role in construction operations, and their work efficiency directly affects the success of the construction projects. However, the heavy and repetitive nature of their tasks often leads to operator fatigue, which in turn compromises both performance and safety. This study investigates the impact of incentive mechanisms on the work efficiency of tower crane operators by analyzing the electroencephalogram (EEG) signals of the operators collected. The multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (MF-DFA) method is employed to examine the Hurst index range and multifractal spectrum width of the EEG signals under two incentive modes: a reward–punishment incentive mode and a no reward–punishment mode. The research results show that there are significant differences between the two incentive modes ( p  < 0.05). The Hurst index range and multifractal spectrum width of the EEG signals under the reward-punishment mode are greater than those under the no reward-punishment mode. Furthermore, during different working stages, the lifting efficiency of prefabricated components is consistently higher in the reward–punishment incentive mode. This indicates that drivers under the incentive mode have less mental fatigue and higher work efficiency. Additionally, in the incentive mode, the lifting efficiency of prefabricated components is significantly higher, demonstrating the practical benefits of such incentives in improving work performance. From this study, it can be concluded that the reward-punishment incentive mechanism effectively improves the work efficiency of tower crane operators by positively influencing their cognitive state. Based on the EEG signals, the impact of incentive mechanisms on human performance can be better understood, and valuable insights can be provided for optimizing the safety and operational efficiency of construction sites.

The mental fatigue of crane operators can pose a serious threat to construction safety. To enhance the safety of crane operations on construction sites, this study proposes a rotary switch semi-dry electrode for detecting the mental fatigue of crane operators. This rotary switch semi-dry electrode overcomes the problems of the large impedance value of traditional dry electrodes, the cumbersome wet electrode operation, and the uncontrollable outflow of conductive liquid from traditional semi-dry electrodes. By designing a rotary switch structure inside the electrode, it allows the electrode to be turned on and used in motion, which greatly improves the efficiency of using the conductive fluid and prolongs the electrode’s use time. A conductive sponge was used at the electrode’s contact end with the skin, improving comfort and making it suitable for long-term wear. In addition, in this study, the multifractal detrend fluctuation analysis (MF-DFA) method was used to detect the mental fatigue state of crane operators. The results indicate that the MF-DFA is more responsive to the tiredness traits of individuals than conventional fatigue detection methods. The proposed rotary switch semi-dry electrode can quickly and accurately detect the mental fatigue of crane operators, provide support for timely warning or intervention, and effectively reduce the risk of accidents at construction sites, enhancing construction safety and efficiency.

Monitoring and understanding pest population dynamics is essential to greenhouse management for effectively preventing infestations and crop diseases. Image-based pest recognition approaches demonstrate the potential for real-time pest monitoring. However, the pest detection models are challenged by the tiny pest scale and complex image background. Therefore, high-quality image datasets and reliable pest detection models are required. In this study, we developed a trapping system with yellow sticky paper and LED light for automatic pest image collection, and proposed an improved YOLOv5 model with copy-pasting data augmentation for pest recognition. We evaluated the system in cherry tomato and strawberry greenhouses during 40 days of continuous monitoring. Six diverse pests, including tobacco whiteflies, leaf miners, aphids, fruit flies, thrips, and houseflies, are observed in the experiment. The results indicated that the proposed improved YOLOv5 model obtained an average recognition accuracy of 96% and demonstrated superiority in identification of nearby pests over the original YOLOv5 model. Furthermore, the two greenhouses show different pest numbers and populations dynamics, where the number of pests in the cherry tomato greenhouse was approximately 1.7 times that in the strawberry greenhouse. The developed time-series pest-monitoring system could provide insights for pest control and further applied to other greenhouses.

Driving fatigue poses a serious threat to road safety. To detect fatigue accurately and thereby improve vehicle safety, this paper proposes a novel semi-dry electrode with the ability to automatically replenish the conductive fluid for monitoring driving fatigue. This semi-dry electrode not only integrates the advantages of both wet and dry electrodes but also incorporates an automatic conductive fluid replenishment mechanism. This design significantly extends the operational lifespan of the electrode while mitigating the limitations of manual replenishment, particularly the risk of signal interference. Additionally, this study adopts a transfer learning approach to detect driving fatigue by analyzing electroencephalography (EEG) signals. The experimental results indicate that this method effectively addresses the issue of data sparsity in real-time fatigue monitoring, overcomes the limitations of traditional algorithms, shows strong generalization performance and cross-domain adaptability, and achieves faster response times with enhanced accuracy. The semi-dry electrode and transfer learning algorithm proposed in this study can provide rapid and accurate detection of driving fatigue, thereby enabling timely alerts or interventions. This approach effectively mitigates the risk of traffic accidents and enhances both vehicle and road traffic safety.

Background Although a general association between nocturnal hypoxemia or sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) and pulmonary arterial hypertension has been established, little is known about the unique pathophysiologic contributions of SDB and nocturnal hypoxemia to chronic thromboembolic pulmonary disease (CTEPD). We therefore chose to examine the associations of SDB and nocturnal hypoxemia with hemodynamic indices obtained via right heart catheterization (RHC) in hospitalized patients with CTEPD. We hypothesized that the severity of CTEPD would be associated with SDB and nocturnal hypoxemia severity. Methods Patients with CTEPD with or without pulmonary hypertension (PH) who had undergone polysomnography (PSG) between July 2022 and March 2024 were enrolled. A nocturnal mean oxygen saturation by pulse oximetry (MeanSpO 2 ) < 90% was defined as nocturnal hypoxemia, and a percentage of total sleep time with oxygen saturation < 90% (T90) exceeding 20% indicated severe nocturnal hypoxemia. The relationships between right heart catheterization measurements and T90 or MeanSpO 2 were calculated using multiple linear regression and logistic regression analyses. Results The prevalence of severe nocturnal hypoxemia in the entire cohort was 42.86%, and SDB (AHI ≥ 15/h) affected 55.84% of patients and was predominantly manifested as hypopnea. Nocturnal hypoxemia remained significantly associated with mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) (T90: β = 0.296, P  = 0.019; MeanSpO 2 : β= -0.333, P  = 0.009) and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) (T90: β = 0.294, P  = 0.021; MeanSpO 2 : β=-0.310, P  = 0.015) after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, apnea hypopnea index and diurnal arterial partial pressure of oxygen. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves for the detection of a mPAP ≥ 25 mmHg, PVR > 3 WU and WHO FC III-IV indicated that nocturnal hypoxemia parameters had moderate predictive value. (T90: AUC mPAP =0.698, AUC PVR =0.733, AUC WHO−FC =0.729, respectively; MeanSpO 2 : AUC mPAP =0.691, AUC PVR =0.731, AUC WHO−FC =0.707, respectively). Conclusions SDB is highly prevalent in patients with CTEPD, which is predominantly manifested as hypopnea rather than apnea, and overweight is not a commonly reported characteristic. Independent of the severity of SDB, nocturnal hypoxemia is significantly correlated with hemodynamics in patients with CTEPD, which indicated the clinical necessity of promoting nocturnal oximetry monitoring among patients with CTEPD.

Mechanical forces are fundamental regulators of cell behaviors. However, molecular regulation of mechanotransduction remain poorly understood. Here, we identified the mechanosensitive channels Piezo1 and Piezo2 as key force sensors required for bone development and osteoblast differentiation. Loss of Piezo1, or more severely Piezo1/2, in mesenchymal or osteoblast progenitor cells, led to multiple spontaneous bone fractures in newborn mice due to inhibition of osteoblast differentiation and increased bone resorption. In addition, loss of Piezo1/2 rendered resistant to further bone loss caused by unloading in both bone development and homeostasis. Mechanistically, Piezo1/2 relayed fluid shear stress and extracellular matrix stiffness signals to activate Ca2+ influx to stimulate Calcineurin, which promotes concerted activation of NFATc1, YAP1 and ß-catenin transcription factors by inducing their dephosphorylation as well as NFAT/YAP1/ß-catenin complex formation. Yap1 and ß-catenin activities were reduced in the Piezo1 and Piezo1/2 mutant bones and such defects were partially rescued by enhanced ß-catenin activities.

Damaged deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a primary pathologic factor for osteoarthritis (OA); however, the mechanism by which DNA damage drives OA is unclear. Previous research demonstrated that the cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS)-stimulator of interferon genes (STING) participates in DNA damage response. As a result, the current study aimed at exploring the role STING, which is the major effector in the cGAS-STING signaling casacde, in OA progress in vitro, as well as in vivo. In this study, the expression of STING was evaluated in the human and mouse OA tissues, and in chondrocytes exposed to interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β). The influences of STING on the metabolism of the extracellular matrix (ECM), apoptosis, and senescence, were assessed in STING overexpressing and knocking-down chondrocytes. Moreover, the NF-κB-signaling casacde and its role in the regulatory effects of STING on ECM metabolism, apoptosis, and senescence were explored. The STING knockdown lentivirus was intra-articularly injected to evaluate its therapeutic impact on OA in mice in vivo. The results showed that the expression of STING was remarkably elevated in the human and mouse OA tissues and in chondrocytes exposed to IL-1β. Overexpression of STING promoted the expression of MMP13, as well as ADAMTS5, but suppressed the expression of Aggrecan, as well as Collagen II; it also enhanced apoptosis and senescence in chondrocytes exposed to and those untreated with IL-1β. The mechanistic study showed that STING activated NF-κB signaling cascade, whereas the blockage of NF-κB signaling attenuated STING-induced apoptosis and senescence, and ameliorated STING-induced ECM metabolism imbalance. In in vivo study, it was demonstrated that STING knockdown alleviated destabilization of the medial meniscus-induced OA development in mice. In conclusion, STING promotes OA by activating the NF-κB signaling cascade, whereas suppression of STING may provide a novel approach for OA therapy.

Intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) is a major cause of low back pain (LBP), and excessive senescence and apoptosis of nucleus pulposus (NP) cells are major pathological changes in IVDD. Physical exercise could effectively delay the process of intervertebral disc degeneration; however, its mechanism is still largely unknown. Irisin is an exercise-induced myokine released upon cleavage of the membrane-bound precursor protein fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 (FNDC5), and its levels increase after physical exercise. Here, we show that after physical exercise, FNDC5/irisin levels increase in the circulation and NP, senescence and apoptosis are reduced, autophagy is activated in NP tissue, and the progression of IVDD is delayed. Conversely, after knocking out FNDC5, the benefits of physical exercise are compromised. Moreover, the overexpression of FNDC5 in NP tissue effectively alleviated the degeneration of the intervertebral disc (IVD) in rats. By showing that FNDC5/irisin is an important mediator of the beneficial effects of physical exercise in the IVDD model, the study proposes FNDC5/irisin as a novel agent capable of activating autophagy and protecting NP from senescence and apoptosis.Spinal disease: Exercise-induced protein protects against disc degenerationPhysical exercise in rodents helps to promote expression of a protein that guards against intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD), a major cause of lower back pain. A team from Wenzhou Medical University in China, led by Xiaolei Zhang and Aimin Wu, showed that mice and rats that participated in regular swimming sessions were less prone to IVDD, an effect mediated by a protein called irisin. Increased levels of this protein (and its precursor form, known as FNDC5) in the cells of the jelly-like tissue found in the core of spinal discs helped to enhance cellular recycling processes. This in turn prevented cell death and deterioration in the spine. Boosting the activity of FNDC5/irisin, either through drugs or exercise, could therefore help alleviate back pain and delay the progression of IVDD in humans.