The Impact of General Self-Efficacy on Psychological Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediating Role of Posttraumatic Growth and the Moderating Role of Deliberate Rumination

Purpose: This study used a moderated mediation model to explore the relationship between general self-efficacy (GSE) and psychological resilience (PR) and the associated mechanisms, the mediating role of posttraumatic growth (PTG), and the moderating role of deliberate rumination (DR) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Knowledge of the relationship between these four variables examined further understanding of the PR improvement mechanism of college students and even the general public.Methods: The college students who participated in this study came from an independent college in Guangdong Province, China. A total of 918 college students completed the survey, and the final data sample size was 881. SPSS 23.0 and PROCESS (version 3.3) were used to conduct Pearson's correlation analysis and hierarchical regression linear analysis on the data.Results: (1) The correlation analysis showed that GSE and PR were positively correlated and that PTG was positively correlated with GSE and PR. DR was positively correlated with GSE, PTG, and PR. (2) The results of mediation analysis showed that GSE had a direct predictive effect on DR, and PTG partially mediated the relationship between the two. (3) The results of moderating effect analysis showed that DR hindered the effect of GSE on PTG but enhanced the positive impact of PTG on PR.Conclusions: General self-efficacy can improve PR under the mediating influence of PTG. DR played a positive moderating role in the relationship between GSE and PTG, and played a negative moderating role in the relationship between PTG and PR. These results advance the understanding of the mechanism between GSE and PR

Monitoring the Process of Endostar-Induced Tumor Vascular Normalization by Non-contrast Intravoxel Incoherent Motion Diffusion-Weighted MRI

Tumor vascular normalization has been proposed as a new concept in anti-tumor angiogenesis, and the normalization window is considered as an opportunity to increase the effect of chemoradiotherapy. However, there is still a lack of a non-invasive method for monitoring the process of tumor vascular normalization. Intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (IVIM DW-MRI) is an emerging approach which can effectively assess microperfusion in tumors, without the need for exogenous contrast agents. However, its role in monitoring tumor vascular normalization still needs further study. In this study, we established a tumor vascular normalization model of CT26 colon-carcinoma-bearing mice by means of Endostar treatment. We then employed IVIM DW-MRI and immunofluorescence to detect the process of tumor vascular normalization at different times after treatment. We found that the D* values of the Endostar group were significantly higher than those of the control group on days 4, 6, 8, and 10 after treatment, and the f values of the Endostar group were significantly higher than those of the control group on days 6 and 8. Furthermore, we confirmed through analysis of histologic parameters that Endostar treatment induced the CT26 tumor vascular normalization window starting from day 4 after treatment, and this window lasted for 6 days. Moreover, we found that D* and f values were well correlated with pericyte coverage (r = 0.469 and 0.504, respectively; P < 0.001, both) and relative perfusion (r = 0.424 and 0.457, respectively; P < 0.001, both). Taken together, our findings suggest that IVIM DW-MRI has the potential to serve as a non-invasive approach for monitoring Endostar-induced tumor vascular normalization

Improvement of resistance to rice blast and bacterial leaf streak by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mutagenesis of Pi21 and OsSULTR3;6 in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is a staple food in many countries around the world, particularly in China. The production of rice is seriously affected by the bacterial leaf streak and rice blast, which can reduce rice yield or even cause it to fail to be harvested. In this study, susceptible material 58B was edited by CRISPR/Cas9, targeting a target of the Pi21 gene and a target of the effector-binding element (EBE) of the OsSULTR3;6 gene, and the mutants 58b were obtained by Agrobacterium-mediated method. The editing efficiency of the two targets in the T0 generation was higher than 90.09%, the homozygous mutants were successfully selected in the T0 generation, and the homozygous mutation rate of each target was higher than 26.67%. The expression of the edited pi21 and EBE of Ossultr3;6 was significantly reduced, and the expression of defense responsive genes was significantly upregulated after infected with rice blast. The lesion areas of rice blast and bacterial leaf streak were significantly reduced in 58b, and the resistance of both was effectively improved. Furthermore, the gene editing events did not affect the agronomic traits of rice. In this study, the resistance of 58b to rice blast and bacterial leaf streak was improved simultaneously. This study provides a reference for using Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats/Cas9 (CRISPR/Cas9) to accelerate the improvement of rice varieties and the development of new materials for rice breeding

Genomic selection analysis of morphological and adaptation traits in Chinese indigenous dog breeds

The significant morphological differences and abundant germplasm resources of Chinese indigenous dog breeds can be attributed to the diverse geographical environment, including plateaus, mountains, and a long history of raising dogs. The combination of both natural and artificial selection during the past several thousand years has led to hundreds of dog breeds with distinct morphological traits and environmental adaptations. China is one of the earliest countries to domesticate dogs and there are more than 50 ancient indigenous dog breeds. In this study, the run of homozygosity (ROH) and proportion of the autosomal genome covered by ROHs (FROH) were calculated for 10 dog breeds that are the most representative Chinese indigenous dogs based on 170K SNP microarray. The results of FROH showed that the Chuandong hound dogs (HCSSC) have the highest level of inbreeding among the tested breeds. The inbreeding in HCSSC occurred more recently than the Liangshan dogs (SCLSQ) dogs because of more numbers of long ROHs in HCSSC dogs, and the former also have higher inbreeding degree. In addition, there are significant differences in the inbreeding degree among different subpopulations of the same breed, such as the Thin dogs from Shaanxi and Shandong province. To explore genome-wide selection signatures among different breeds, including coat color, ear shape, and altitude adaptability, we performed genome selection analyses of FST and cross population extended haplotype homozygosity (XP-EHH). For the coat color, the FST analysis between Xiasi dogs (XSGZ) and HCSSC dogs was performed and identified multiple genes involved in coat color, hair follicle, and bone development, including MC1R, KITLG, SOX5, RSPO2, and TBX15. For the plateau adaptability, we performed FST and XP-EHH analyses between dogs from Tibet (Tibetan Mastiffs and Nyingchi dogs) and plain regions (Guangxi Biwei dogs GXBWQ and Guandong Sharpei dogs). The results showed the EPAS1 gene in dogs from Tibet undergo strong selection. Multiple genes identified for selection signals based on different usage of dogs. Furthermore, the results of ear shape analyses showed that MSRB3 was likely to be the main gene causing the drop ear of domestic dogs. Our study provides new insights into further understanding of Chinese indigenous dogs

Boundary element simulation of void formation in fibrous reinforcements based on the Stokes–Darcy formulation

The Boundary Element Method (BEM) is applied for the solution of the problem of void formation in fibrous reinforcements used in composite materials. Stokes and Darcy formulations for the channel and porous medium are considered, including three main differences with most of the previous models reported in the literature that deal with this type of problem: the consideration of the general form of the Beavers–Joseph slip condition instead of the Saffman simplification, the calculation of the flow direction-dependent capillary pressure in the porous medium without experimental factors and the consideration of the surface traction effects in the channel fluid front. An analytical solution of a simple problem is presented to assess the accuracy and convergence of the BEM solution, obtaining good agreement between the results. In order to evaluate the main differences between the Stokes–Darcy formulation and a dual-scale permeability Darcy approach, a problem of constant pressure filling is considered, showing significant differences in the evolution of the flow field as: filling times, shape of the moving fluid front and size and shape of the formed voids. Finally, several simulations at constant flow rate are carried out to analyze the influence of the capillary number, tow porosity, width of transverse tow, fluid penetrability and RUC porosity on the size, shape and location of the void. In general, the void size and shape are influenced by the considered parameters, but the void location is not

On the Integration of National Costume Elements and Modern Costume Design

With the increasing development of modern national costume design, the integration of national costume elements and modern costume design has been in widely application and has become the focus of modern costume designers. In order to protect and develop the essence of the traditional national culture, it is necessary to further explore and flexibly apply national costume elements, to find the joint point between national culture and modern elements, and to create modern costume which is rich in national characteristics. The paper describes the main content of national costume elements and the meaning of its application to modern costume design, discusses the specific content of the integration of national costume elements and modern costume design, and further reflects the profound traditional culture by using modern design language which makes the works vintage and modern

Forests and Forestry in Support of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): A Bibliometric Analysis

To address the world’s ongoing environmental challenges, 193 countries have committed to 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) concerning the economy, society, and the environment. However, there are gaps in our understanding of forests and forestry support SDGs. Through a systematized review, we identified which SDGs are relevant to forests and forestry at the target level, along with their interactions (synergies or tradeoffs). In addition, a bibliometric analysis of 377 papers was conducted worldwide between 2015 and 2020, to elucidate the status and development trends of SDG research related to forests and forestry in this study. The research results show that: (1) 11 SDGs and 19 targets are related to forests and forestry, and 47 are interactions between SDG15 and other targets, including 35 synergy effects and 12 tradeoff effects. (2) The USA is the highest publication output country, while the Chinese Academy of Sciences is the highest publication output institution, and Jianguo Liu of the University of Michigan is the highest publication output author. (3) The keyword co-occurrence analysis results show that the research hotspots mainly focused on the impacts of and responses to climate change, biodiversity conservation, land resource protection and management, remote sensing, the impacts of deforestation, and the promotion of sustainable development through governance. (4) The co-citation results reveal the existence of nine research themes: human well-being, food security, land use, land productivity, land tenure, tree loss, simulation models, criteria, and resilience

An Attempt of a New Strategy in PRV Prevention: Co-Injection with Inactivated <i>Enterococcus faecium</i> and Inactivated Pseudorabies Virus Intravenously

Pseudorabies virus (PRV) is one of the causative agents of common infectious diseases in swine herds. Enterococcus faecium is a probiotic belonging to the group of lactic acid bacteria and has excellent immunomodulatory effects. Vaccine immunization is an important approach to prevent animal diseases in the modern farming industry, and good immunization outcomes can substantially reduce the damage caused by pathogens to animals, improve the quality of animals’ lives, and reduce economic losses. In the present study, we showed that inactivated E. faecium and inactivated PRV when co-injected intravenously significantly reduced the mortality of mice after inoculation with PRV. The inactivated E. faecium + inactivated PRV intravenous injection group induced more production of Th cells and Tc cells. Additionally, the inactivated E. faecium + inactivated PRV intravenous injection group showed higher concentrations of cytokines (IFN-γ and IL-10) and induced higher antibody production. Thus, the co-injection of inactivated E. faecium and inactivated PRV could remarkably prevent and control the lethality of PRV infection in mice, which is a critical finding for vaccination and clinical development

Ruminococcaceae_UCG-013 Promotes Obesity Resistance in Mice

Alterations in the gut microbiome have been linked to obesity and type 2 diabetes, in epidemiologic studies and studies of fecal transfer effects in germ-free mice. Here, we aimed to identify the effects of specific gut microbes on the phenotype of mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD). After eight weeks of HFD feeding, male C57BL/6J mice in the HFD group ranking in the upper and lower quartiles for body weight gain were considered obese prone and obese resistant, respectively. 16S rRNA gene sequencing was used to determine the composition of the intestinal microbiota, and fecal transplantation (FMT) was conducted to determine whether the microbiota plays a causal role in phenotypic variation. Ruminococcaceae_UCG-013 was more abundant in the gut microbes of mice with a lean phenotype than in those with an obese phenotype. Ruminococcaceae_UCG-013 was identified as the most significant biomarker for alleviating obesity by random forest analysis. In a correlation analysis of serum parameters and body weight, Ruminococcaceae_UCG-013 was positively associated with serum HDL-C levels and negatively associated with serum TC, TG, and LDL-C levels. To conclude, Ruminococcaceae_UCG-013 was identified as a novel microbiome biomarker for obesity resistance, which may serve as a basis for understanding the critical gut microbes responsible for obesity resistance. Ruminococcaceae_UCG-013 may serve as a target for microbiome-based diagnoses and treatments in the future

Chemical Composition and Cytotoxic Activities of Petroleum Ether Fruit Extract of Fruits of Brucea javanica (Simarubaceae)

Purpose: To investigate the chemical composition and antitumor activity of the petroleum ether extract of the dried ripe fruits of Brucea javanica . Methods: The composition of petroleum ether extract was analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometric (GC/MS) and their antitumor activities were determined by MTT assay. Results: GC/MS spectrometry results indicate that the petroleum ether extract was a mixture of esters, fatty acids, sterides, pregnanones, terpenes, alkaloids, alkenes, alcohols, ketones, aldehydes and other compounds. The results also revealed the significant antitumor activity of the extract with IC50 of 9.14, 12.45, 15.15, 16.13, 22.26, and 27.97 μg/mL against A549, CNE, MCF-7, NCI-H460, HepG2, and KB-3-1 cell lines, respectively. Conclusion: The study establishes the chemical composition and cytotoxic activity of the petroleum ether extract of the plant fruits. There is need for further investigations to isolate more potent compounds and structurally modify the known compounds to retain activity and lower toxicity and thus lead to the possible development of Brucea javanica oil