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We analyzed the measurements of ozone (O3) and its precursors made at rural/suburban sites downwind of four large Chinese cities – Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Lanzhou, to elucidate their pollution characteristics, regional transport, in situ production, and impacts of heterogeneous processes. The same measurement techniques and observation-based model were used to minimize uncertainties in comparison of the results due to difference in methodologies. All four cities suffered from serious O3 pollution but showed different precursor distributions. The model-calculated in situ O3 production rates were compared with the observed change rates to infer the relative contributions of on-site photochemistry and transport. At the rural site downwind of Beijing, export of the well-processed urban plumes contributed to the extremely high O3 levels (up to an hourly value of 286 ppbv), while the O3 pollution observed at suburban sites of Shanghai, Guangzhou and Lanzhou was dominated by intense in situ production. The O3 production was in a volatile organic compound (VOC)-limited regime in both Shanghai and Guangzhou, and a NOx-limited regime in Lanzhou. The key VOC precursors are aromatics and alkenes in Shanghai, and aromatics in Guangzhou. The potential impacts on O3 production of several heterogeneous processes, namely, hydrolysis of dinitrogen pentoxide (N2O5), uptake of hydro peroxy radical (HO2) on particles and surface reactions of NO2 forming nitrous acid (HONO), were assessed. The analyses indicate the varying and considerable impacts of these processes in different areas of China depending on the atmospheric abundances of aerosol and NOx, and suggest the urgent need to better understand these processes and represent them in photochemical models.

The beam transport process plays a crucial role in the design and realization of negative-ion-based neutral beam injection (N-NBI) systems for thermonuclear fusion. In particular, space charge compensation (SCC), where positive ions generated by collisions between negative ions and background gas mitigate space charge effects, serves as a critical mechanism influencing beam divergence and envelope evolution. In this work, the SCC process in N-NBI systems and its impact on beam transport are investigated using a 3D simulation model based on a Vlasov beam-tracing algorithm. Systematic simulations show that SCC evolution and downstream beam optics are jointly controlled by background gas pressure and beam energy, with higher pressure and higher energy strengthening SCC and mitigating divergence and envelope growth downstream of the extraction system. A key physical observation is that collisionless phase mixing drives the transverse velocity distribution of secondary ions toward a Maxwellian distribution, enabling an effective transverse ion temperature that quantitatively correlates with SCC degree. The residual electric field leaking downstream of the extraction system locally weakens SCC over a finite extent, producing negligible beam optics impact for the ITER-relevant 1 MeV case at pressures of 5 × 10 − 3 Pa and 1 × 10 − 2 Pa , but non-negligible transport sensitivity at 200 keV under the same pressure range. These results provide new insight into the interplay between SCC, secondary-ion dynamics, and beam transport, with direct relevance to the modeling and optimization of high-energy NBI beamlines.

The inhibitory effects of Chinese leek ( Allium tuberosum ) on Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense ( Foc ) and on Fusarium wilt incidence were studied in order to identify a potential efficient way to control the disease. Adopting the rotation system of Chinese leek-banana reduced the Fusarium wilt incidence and disease severity index by 88–97 % and 91–96 %, respectively, and improved the crop value by 36–86 %, in an area heavily infested by Foc between 2007 and 2009. As a result of inoculation in the greenhouse, Chinese leek treatment reduced disease incidence and the disease severity index by 58 % and 62 %, respectively in the variety Baxi (AAA) and by 79 % and 81 %, respectively in the variety Guangfen NO.1 (ABB). Crude extracts of Chinese leek completely inhibited the growth of Foc race 4 on Petri dishes, suppressed the proliferation of the spores by 91 % and caused 87 % spore mortality. The findings of this study suggest that Chinese leek has the potential to inhibit Foc growth and Fusarium wilt incidence. This potential may be developed into an environmentally friendly treatment to control Fusarium wilt of banana.

Bone remodeling is essential for adult bone homeostasis. The failure of this process often leads to the development of osteoporosis, a present major global health concern. The most important factor that affects normal bone remodeling is the tightly controlled and orchestrated regulation of osteoblasts and osteoclasts. The present review summarized the recent discoveries related to osteoblast regulation from several signals, including transforming growth factor-β, bone morphogenetic proteins, Wnt signal, Notch, Eph–Ephrin interaction, parathyroid hormone/parathyroid hormone-related peptide, and the leptin–serotonin–sympathetic nervous systemic pathway. The awareness of these mechanisms will facilitate further research that explores bone remodeling and osteoporosis. Future investigations on the endogenous regulation of osteoblastogenesis will increase the current knowledge required for the development of potential drug targets in the treatment of osteoporosis.

As a major cardiovascular risk factor for stroke, coronary artery disease, heart failure and end-stage renal disease, hypertension affects approximately one billion people and causes large economic burden worldwide. Cytochrome P450 3A5 ( CYP3A5 ), belonging to the CYP3A subfamily, has been implicated in the regulation of blood pressure and may serve as a potential risk factor for the development of hypertension. Increased CYP3A5 activity could cause sodium and water retention by affecting the metabolism of cortisol in the kidneys. Furthermore, polymorphic CYP3A5 genotypes have been shown to cause differences in blood pressure response to antihypertensive drugs. Several studies have investigated the role of CYP3A5 in blood pressure response to amlodipine. However, recent data on the role of CYP3A5 in hypertension development and treatment are inconsistent. This review summarizes what is known regarding the relationship of CYP3A5 with hypertension, discusses the limitations in present studies, highlights the gaps and directs research to this field.

The objective of the study was to obtain baseline data on haematological parameters, blood cell sizes and morphology in cultured male and female Gymnocypris eckloni Herzenstein, 1891. Forty‐eight healthy 3‐year‐old G. eckloni (26 males: 525.79 ± 48.56 g weight, 34.51 ± 1.88 cm total length; 22 females: 507.60 ± 54.48 g weight, 33.97 ± 1.84 cm total length) were used for this study. Both male and female gonadal maturity were at stage III (maturing). The fish were reared in 25–36 m² outdoor tanks at dissolved oxygen 6.86 ± 0.48 mg L⁻¹, pH 7.22 ± 0.58, temperature 12.40 ± 0.94°C and stocking density 50–80 fish m⁻³ during November 2014. The fish were fed commercial carp floating foods containing 35% crude protein three times daily. Haematological values were performed manually on heparin anticoagulated blood specimens using standard methods. The morphological features of blood cells and differential cell counts were done on Wright–Giemsa stained blood smears with no anticoagulants. Erythrocytes, leucocytes (neutrophils, eosinophils, lymphocytes and monocytes) and thrombocytes were distinguished and characterized under light microscope. The percentage of the different leukocytes revealed predominance of small lymphocytes (male: 62.31 ± 2.06%; female: 63.00 ± 2.25%) and nurophiles (male: 23.85 ± 1.51%; female: 23.49 ± 1.67%) followed by fewer monocytes (male: 4.81 ± 0.68%; female: 4.80 ± 0.77%) and few eosinophils (male: 3.73 ± 0.82%; female: 3.52 ± 0.67%). The nurophile percentages of each stage showed that metamyelocyte accounted for the most (male: 13.29 ± 0.88%; female: 13.07 ± 0.98%), followed by banded ones (male: 7.18 ± 0.49%; female: 7.00 ± 0.58%). The microstructure of G. eckloni blood cells was similar to that of other fish. Sex‐dependent differences for the erythrocyte counts, haemoglobin, haematocrit and mean corpuscular haemoglobin were found (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); while differences in other haematological parameters (P > 0.05) and blood cell morphology between male and female fish were not significant. Hematologic parameters and knowledge of morphological characteristics of male and female G. eckloni blood cells could be utilized to evaluate the health status of this species in captivity.

Faraday shield(FS) is a metallic shield with slits through which electromagnetic energy is coupled into cylindrical ICP sources. Thus, the effect of FS on the RF field and power coupling is important. A 2D semi-analytical electromagnetic model considering both FS and plasma is proposed. The results compared to a 2D numerical model shows that the semi-analytical model is available in electromagnetic field calculations. It is found that both FS and plasma have no influence on the magnetic field outside them. FS strengthens the electric field around the slits and weakens the electric field around the middle of the stripes, and this effect is due to the gradient field generated by the electric charge accumulated on the FS surfaces. From the point of view of the pure 2D electromagnetic field, FS affects the electric field distribution in a small region, and it seems to not affect the total power coupling into plasma.

Purpose: The Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) score has proven value in predicting short-term prognosis in non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), but it has only moderate discrimination for long-term outcomes. The purpose of this study is to develop and test a multi-biomarker score for better risk stratification and indication of 2-year risk in patients with NSTEMI. Patients and Methods: A total of 6076 consecutive patients with NSTEMI (66 [59-73] years, 73.1% males) admitted at Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University were collected in this observational, prospective study between 2012 and 2018 with a 24-month follow-up. The primary endpoint was all-cause death and non-fatal major adverse cardiac events (MACE). A biomarker score ranged from 0 to 12 was constructed. The predictive power of the biomarker score was evaluated alone or combined with the GRACE score by C-statistic, net reclassification index (NRI) and integrated discrimination index (IDI). Results: During a 2-year follow-up, all-cause death occurred in 159 patients (2.6%), and non-fatal MACEs were presented in 709 patients (11.7%). When added to the GRACE score, the biomarker score demonstrated better prognostic accuracy, patient reclassification and risk discrimination for both mortality and non-fatal MACEs at 2 years by improving the C-statistic from 0.714 (0.671-0.756) and 0.623 (0.600-0.646) to 0.851 (0.820-0.882) and 0.721 (0.702-0.741) with NRI >25% (P<0.001) and IDI >0.30 (P<0.001). Conclusion: The single use of biomarker score could markedly enhance the prognostic value of concurrent risk stratification tools for 2-year mortality and non-fatal MACEs in NSTEMI. The GRACE score with incorporation of the biomarker score led to more accurate risk reclassification and warrants more consideration in further NSTEMI management. Keywords: risk stratification, prognosis, net reclassification improvement, integrated discrimination improvement

This study aimed to investigate the association of Nicotinamide phosphoribosyl transferase (NAMPT) rs61330082 polymorphism with co-morbid hypertension (HTN) and the progression of hypertension in Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). A total of 453 T2DM patients were genotyped for the polymorphism of rs61330082 using SNP-scan high-throughput technology. These patients were divided into T2DM group (261 patients) and T2DM combined with hypertension group (T2MH, 192 patients). The T2MH group was further categorized into Grade I, Grade II, and Grade III based on the results of the Hypertension Grade Score. Peripheral blood plasma urea, plasma creatinine, renin-angiotensin system (RAS) indexes, and lipid biochemistry indexes were measured in patients and analyzed in relation to NAMTP polymorphisms. We found that the presence of the NAMPT rs61330082-AA genotype was associated with a significantly increased risk of developing higher-grade hypertension in patients with T2MH. In addition, the A allele of the NAMPT rs61330082 gene displayed more associated in developing a higher grade of hypertension compared to the G allele. Also, the level of total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) increased with hypertension grade in the NAMPT rs61330082-GG genotype. NAMPT rs61330082 polymorphism was significantly associated with the progression of hypertension grade in T2MH patients and also affected plasma creatinine and LDL-c levels.

To estimate the prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and the level of psychological distress and to assess the inter-associations of them among type 2 diabetic men, a cross-sectional observational study of 335 men with type 2 diabetes and 284 men without diabetes from a hospital in Hefei city, Anhui province, China, was conducted. The erectile function was assessed using the five-item version of the International Index of Erectile Function scale (IIEF-5). The evaluation of psychological distress was completed using a self-administered questionnaire, the Symptom Checklist 90–Revised (SCL-90-R). In this study, ED was more prevalent in type 2 diabetic men than that in the control group (58.51% vs 26.76%, P <0.001). All subscale scores of SCL-90-R were significantly higher in the group with type 2 diabetes ( N =335) than those in the group without type 2 diabetes ( N =284). All scores of SCL-90-R subscales were inversely correlated with IIEF-5 score. ED and psychological distress were strongly correlated in type 2 diabetic patients. Clinicians should be aware of the association between ED and psychological distress when treating men with type 2 diabetes.