Decisions to use antibiotics for upper respiratory tract infections across China: a large-scale cross-sectional survey among university students.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the decision-making process of Chinese university students with respect to antibiotic use for upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs). DESIGN: A cross-sectional questionnaire study. SETTING: The participants recruited from six universities across all Chinese regions from September to November 2015. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 2834 university students sampled across six Chinese regions who self-reported experiencing symptoms of URTI within the past month completed the survey. OUTCOME MEASURES: The prevalence of decisions for treatment and antibiotic use for URTIs as well as knowledge about antibiotic use were measured by a self-administrated questionnaire. Using regular and multinomial logistic regression a nd adapted health belief model, we identified and measured a number of variables as potential risk factors for antibiotic misuse behaviours in order to explain and predict people's treatment decisions and antibiotic use including knowledge, perceptions, access to antibiotics and cues to action. RESULTS: Of the 2834 university students who self-diagnosed a URTI, 947 (33.4%) self-reported having taken antibiotics; among them, 462 (48.8%) used non-prescription antibiotics, which came principally from left-over prescriptions (29.0%) and over-the-counter purchases at retail pharmacies (67.3%). One in four who sought care pressured their doctors for antibiotics; all received them. Those who perceived greater severity of the disease, had access to antibiotics, perceived benefits of using antibiotics (for the common cold: adjusted OR (aOR)=2.55, 95% CI 1.93 to 3.38 or as anti-inflammatory drugs: aOR=1.35, 95% CI 1.12 to 1.63), and were cued to action (eg, seeing presence of fever: aOR=2.05, 95% CI 1.62 to 2.60 or self-diagnosing their current infection as severe: aOR=1.86, 95% CI 1.41 to 2.45), keeping antibiotics at home (aOR=2.27, 95% CI 1.83 to 2.81) and access to over-the-counter antibiotics (aOR=2.00, 95% CI 1.63 to 2.45), were more likely to misuse antibiotics. CONCLUSIONS: Misconceptions of antibiotic efficacy and easy access to antibiotics-with or without a prescription-were associated with antibiotic misuse among Chinese university students, which calls for context-appropriate multifaceted interventions in order to effectively reduce antibiotic misuse

Radiomics signature for predicting postoperative disease-free survival of patients with gastric cancer: development and validation of a predictive nomogram

PURPOSERadiomics can be used to determine the prognosis of gastric cancer (GC). The objective of this study was to predict the disease-free survival (DFS) after GC surgery based on computed tomography-enhanced images combined with clinical features.METHODSClinical, imaging, and pathological data of patients who underwent gastric adenocarcinoma resection from June 2015 to May 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. The primary outcome was DFS. Radiomics features were selected using Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator algorithm and converted into the Rad-score. A nomogram was constructed based on the Radscore and other clinical factors. The Rad-score and nomogram were validated in the training and validation groups.RESULTSTotally, 179 patients were randomly divided into the training (n=124) and validation (n=55) groups. In the training group, validation group, and overall population, the Rad-score could be divided into categories indicating low, moderate, and high risk of recurrence, metastasis, or death; all risk categories showed a significant difference between the training, validation, and overall population groups (all P < .001). Positive lymph nodes (hazard ratio (HR)=3.07, 95% CI: 1.52-6.23, P=.002), cancer antigen-125 (HR=3.24, 95% CI: 1.54-6.80, P=.002), and the Radscore (HR=0.73, 95% CI: 0.61-0.87, P < .001) were independently associated with DFS. These 3 variables were used to construct a nomogram. In the training group, the areas under the curve at 3 years were 0.758 and 0.776 for the Rad-score and the nomogram, respectively, while they were both 1.000 in the validation group. The net benefit rate was analyzed using a decision curve in the training and validation groups, and the nomogram was superior to the single Rad-score.CONCLUSIONRad-score is an independent factor for DFS after gastrectomy for GC. The nomogram established in this study could be an effective tool for the clinical prediction of DFS after gastrectomy

Distinct Biogeography of Different Fungal Guilds and Their Associations With Plant Species Richness in Forest Ecosystems

Plant pathogens are increasingly considered as important agents in promoting plant coexistence, while plant symbionts like ectomycorrhizal fungi (EMF) can facilitate plant dominance by helping conspecific individuals to defend against plant pathogens. However, we know little about their relationships with plants at large scales. Here, using soil fungal data collected from 28 forest reserves across China, we explored the latitudinal diversity gradients of overall fungi and different fungal functional guilds, including putative plant pathogens, EMF, and saprotrophic fungi. We further linked the spatial patterns of alpha diversities of putative plant pathogens and EMF to the variation of plant species richness. We found that the relationships between latitude and alpha diversities of putative plant pathogens and EMF were region-dependent with sharp diversity shifts around the mid-latitude (similar to 35 degrees N), which differed from the unimodal diversity distributions of the overall and saprotrophic fungi. The variations in the diversities of putative plant pathogens and EMF were largely explained by the spatial regions (south vs. north/subtropical zone vs. temperate zone). Additionally, the alpha diversities of these two fungal guilds exhibited opposing trends across latitude. EMF could alter the relationship between diversities of putative plant pathogens and plants in the south/subtropical region, but not vice versa. We also found that the ratio of their alpha diversities (EMF to putative plant pathogens) was negatively related to plant species richness across the spatial regions (north to south), and explained similar to 10% of the variation of plant species richness. Overall, our findings suggest that plant-microbe interactions not only shape the local plant diversity but also may have non-negligible contributions to the large-scale patterns of plant diversity in forest ecosystems.National Natural Science Foundation of China [31600403, 31800422, 41673111, U1501232, 41622106]; Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province, China [2016A030312003]; U.S. National Science Foundation MacroSystems Biology program [NSF EF-1065844]; Candidates at Sun Yat-Sen UniversityOpen access journalThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

Rapid detection of porcine circovirus type 2 using a TaqMan-based real-time PCR

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) and the associated disease postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) have caused heavy losses in global agriculture in recent decades. Rapid detection of PCV2 is very important for the effective prophylaxis and treatment of PMWS. To establish a sensitive, specific assay for the detection and quantitation of PCV2, we designed and synthesized specific primers and a probe in the open reading frame 2. The assay had a wide dynamic range with excellent linearity and reliable reproducibility, and detected between 102 and 1010 copies of the genomic DNA per reaction. The coefficient of variation for Ct values varied from 0.59% to 1.05% in the same assay and from 1.9% to 4.2% in 10 different assays. The assay did not cross-react with porcine circovirus type 1, porcine reproductive and respiratory, porcine epidemic diarrhea, transmissible gastroenteritis of pigs and rotavirus. The limits of detection and quantitation were 10 and 100 copies, respectively. Using the established real-time PCR system, 39 of the 40 samples we tested were detected as positive

Variations in the fecal microbiota and their functions of Thoroughbred, Mongolian, and Hybrid horses

The horse gut is colonized by a rich and complex microbial community that has important roles in horse physiology, metabolism, nutrition, and immune functions. Fewer across-breed variations in horse gut microbial diversity have been illustrated. In this article, the gut microbiota of Thoroughbred, Mongolian, and Hybrid horses [first filial generation (F1) of Mongolian (maternal) and Thoroughbred (paternal)] were studied by second-generation high-throughput sequencing technology. Differences in gut microbiota composition and function between breeds were determined using diversity and functional prediction analysis. The alpha diversity analysis showed that Thoroughbred horses had a more abundant and diverse gut microbiota, while the diversity of gut microbiota in Hybrid horses was intermediate between Thoroughbred and Mongolian horses. Subsequent cluster analysis showed that Hybrid horses have a microbiota composition more similar to Mongolian horses. LEfSe analysis revealed that the bacterial biomarkers for Thoroughbred horses at the family level were Prevotellaceae, Rikenellaceae, Fibrobacteraceae, p_251_o5, Lactobacillaceae, and uncultured_bacterium_o_WCHB1_41; the bacterial biomarker for Mongolian horses was Planococcaceae; and the bacterial biomarkers for Hybrid horses were Moraxellaceae, Enterobacteriaceae, and Ruminococcaceae. The functional prediction results indicated that the metabolic pathways differ significantly between the breeds. Regarding metabolism, the Hybrid horses had the lowest proportion of the carbohydrate metabolic pathways, while the energy metabolic pathway had the highest proportion. The abundance ratios of the remaining eight metabolic pathways in Hybrid horses were between Thoroughbred and Mongolian horses. In conclusion, the results of this study showed an association between horse breeds and gut microbiota

Empagliflozin alleviates atherosclerotic calcification by inhibiting osteogenic differentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells

SGLT-2 inhibitors, such as empagliflozin, have been shown to reduce the occurrence of cardiovascular events and delay the progression of atherosclerosis. However, its role in atherosclerotic calcification remains unclear. In this research, ApoE−/− mice were fed with western diet and empagliflozin was added to the drinking water for 24 weeks. Empagliflozin treatment significantly alleviated arterial calcification assessed by alizarin red and von kossa staining in aortic roots and reduced the lipid levels, while had little effect on body weight and blood glucose levels in ApoE−/− mice. In vitro studies, empagliflozin significantly inhibits calcification of primary vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and aortic rings induced by osteogenic media (OM) or inorganic phosphorus (Pi). RNA sequencing of VSMCs cultured in OM with or without empagliflozin showed that empagliflozin negatively regulated the osteogenic differentiation of VSMCs. And further studies confirmed that empagliflozin significantly inhibited osteogenic differentiation of VSMCs via qRT-PCR. Our study demonstrates that empagliflozin alleviates atherosclerotic calcification by inhibiting osteogenic differentiation of VSMCs, which addressed a critical need for the discovery of a drug-based therapeutic approach in the treatment of atherosclerotic calcification

Effects of simulated heat waves on cardiovascular functions in senile mice

The mechanism of the effects of simulated heat waves on cardiovascular disease in senile mice was investigated. Heat waves were simulated in a TEM1880 meteorological environment simulation chamber, according to a heat wave that occurred in July 2001 in Nanjing, China. Eighteen senile mice were divided into control, heat wave, and heat wave BH4 groups, respectively. Mice in the heat wave and heat wave BH4 groups were exposed to simulated heat waves in the simulation chamber. The levels of ET-1, NO, HSP60, SOD, TNF, sICAM-1, and HIF-1a in each group of mice were measured after heat wave simulation. Results show that heat waves decreased SOD activity in the myocardial tissue of senile mice, increased NO, HSP60, TNF, sICAM-1, and HIF-1a levels, and slightly decreased ET-1 levels, BH4 can relieve the effects of heat waves on various biological indicators. After a comprehensive analysis of the experiments above, we draw the followings conclusions regarding the influence of heat waves on senile mice: excess HSP60 activated immune cells, and induced endothelial cells and macrophages to secrete large amounts of ICAM-1, TNF-a, and other inflammatory cytokines, it also activated the inflammation response in the body and damaged the coronary endothelial cell structure, which increased the permeability of blood vessel intima and decreased SOD activity in cardiac tissues. The oxidation of lipoproteins in the blood increased, and large amounts of cholesterol were generated. Cholesterol penetrated the intima and deposited on the blood vessel wall, forming atherosclerosis and leading to the occurrence of cardiovascular disease in senile mice. These results maybe are useful for studying the effects of heat waves on elderly humans, which we discussed in the discussion chapter.Peer reviewedComputer Scienc

Retraction Note: Identification of de Novo Mutations in Prenatal Neurodevelopment-Associated Genes in Schizophrenia in Two Han Chinese Patient-Sibling Family-Based Cohorts (Translational Psychiatry, (2020), 10, 1, (307), 10.1038/s41398-020-00987-Z)

© 2020, The Author(s). This article1 has been retracted at the request of Authors Xingwang Li and Lin He. After publication, it was realized that approval to use data from the NSFC-NIH Sino-US cooperation project (Project No. 81361120389) was not obtained from the data owners. Authors Dongmei Cao, Xiangning Chen, Lin He, Kenneth Kendler, Xingwang Li, Travis Mize, Chunling Wan and Jain-Shing Wu agree to this retraction. Authors Shan Jiang, Jingchun Chen and Zongming Zhao do not agree to this retraction. Authors Guang He, Peilin Jia, Xiaoqian Jiang, Yimei Lu, Ming Tsuang, Yin-Ying Wang and Daizhan Zhou did not respond to correspondence from the Publisher about this retraction

Joint analysis of three genome-wide association studies of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in Chinese populations

We conducted a joint (pooled) analysis of three genome-wide association studies (GWAS) 1-3 of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in ethnic Chinese (5,337 ESCC cases and 5,787 controls) with 9,654 ESCC cases and 10,058 controls for follow-up. In a logistic regression model adjusted for age, sex, study, and two eigenvectors, two new loci achieved genome-wide significance, marked by rs7447927 at 5q31.2 (per-allele odds ratio (OR) = 0.85, 95% CI 0.82-0.88; P=7.72x10−20) and rs1642764 at 17p13.1 (per-allele OR= 0.88, 95% CI 0.85-0.91; P=3.10x10−13). rs7447927 is a synonymous single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in TMEM173 and rs1642764 is an intronic SNP in ATP1B2, near TP53. Furthermore, a locus in the HLA class II region at 6p21.32 (rs35597309) achieved genome-wide significance in the two populations at highest risk for ESSC (OR=1.33, 95% CI 1.22-1.46; P=1.99x10−10). Our joint analysis identified new ESCC susceptibility loci overall as well as a new locus unique to the ESCC high risk Taihang Mountain region