Hegemonic Gaze: Tyranny, Media Chauvinism and the Image of Women - Based on Chinese Mainstream Media’s News Coverage of Ailing Gu's Winter Olympics Victory

During the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, Chinese freeskier Ailing Gu received much media attention. Past literature and journalistic practice on the media and sport suggest that sport has been an area of absolute male hegemony since ancient times and that the media is constructed around hegemonic male values that help to reinforce ‘historical gender norms. This paper examines the construction of Ailing Gu’s image of the ‘other’ in the media frameworks and discourses based on news stories about her in the official and commercial media. The study finds that the deconstruction of Ailing Gu’s image as an athlete in the news coverage, which appears to reinforce the discourse of female athletes, still serves the ultimate goal of male domination and remains, in essence, a chauvinistic and hegemonic gaze

Arachidonic acid is associated with dyslipidemia and cholesterol-related lipoprotein metabolism signatures

IntroductionAbnormal lipoprotein metabolism is associated with a variety of diseases, cardiovascular disease in particular. Free fatty acids (FAs) and triglycerides (TGs) are the principal lipid species in adipocytes and are the major components of lipoproteins. However, in routine clinical laboratory testing, only the total plasma concentrations of FAs and TGs are typically measured.MethodsWe collected 965 individuals with hyperlipidemia plasma and clinical characteristics; high-throughput metabolomics permits the accurate qualitative and quantitative assessment of a variety of specific FAs and TGs and their association with lipoproteins; through regression analysis, the correlation between multiple metabolites and routine measured lipid parameters was found. Mice were fed a diet containing AA, and the concentrations of TC and TG in the plasma of mice were detected by enzyme method, western blot and qRT-PCR detected the protein and mRNA levels of cholesterol synthesis and metabolism in mice.ResultUsing LC-MS/MS identified eight free FA and 27 TG species in plasma samples, the plasma concentrations of free arachidonic acid (AA) and AA-enriched TG species were significantly associated with the plasma low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, apolipoprotein B (ApoB), and total cholesterol (TC) concentrations after adjustment for age, sex, the use of lipid-lowering therapy, and body mass index. AA-rich diet significantly increased the plasma concentrations of TC and ApoB and the liver expression of ApoB protein and reduced the protein expression of ATP binding cassette subfamily G members 5 and 8 in mice.DiscussionIn this study, it was clarified that the plasma concentrations of free AA- and AA-enriched TG species were significantly associated with the plasma low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, ApoB, and TC concentrations in individuals with hyperlipidemia, and it was verified that AA could increase the plasma TC level in mice. Taken together, these findings suggest a potential role of AA in the regulation of plasma cholesterol and lipoprotein concentrations

Survey on Factuality in Large Language Models: Knowledge, Retrieval and Domain-Specificity

This survey addresses the crucial issue of factuality in Large Language Models (LLMs). As LLMs find applications across diverse domains, the reliability and accuracy of their outputs become vital. We define the Factuality Issue as the probability of LLMs to produce content inconsistent with established facts. We first delve into the implications of these inaccuracies, highlighting the potential consequences and challenges posed by factual errors in LLM outputs. Subsequently, we analyze the mechanisms through which LLMs store and process facts, seeking the primary causes of factual errors. Our discussion then transitions to methodologies for evaluating LLM factuality, emphasizing key metrics, benchmarks, and studies. We further explore strategies for enhancing LLM factuality, including approaches tailored for specific domains. We focus two primary LLM configurations standalone LLMs and Retrieval-Augmented LLMs that utilizes external data, we detail their unique challenges and potential enhancements. Our survey offers a structured guide for researchers aiming to fortify the factual reliability of LLMs.Comment: 62 pages; 300+ reference

BLISS is a versatile and quantitative method for genome-wide profiling of DNA double-strand breaks

Precisely measuring the location and frequency of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) along the genome is instrumental to understanding genomic fragility, but current methods are limited in versatility, sensitivity or practicality. Here we present Breaks Labeling In Situ and Sequencing (BLISS), featuring the following: (1) direct labelling of DSBs in fixed cells or tissue sections on a solid surface; (2) low-input requirement by linear amplification of tagged DSBs by in vitro transcription; (3) quantification of DSBs through unique molecular identifiers; and (4) easy scalability and multiplexing. We apply BLISS to profile endogenous and exogenous DSBs in low-input samples of cancer cells, embryonic stem cells and liver tissue. We demonstrate the sensitivity of BLISS by assessing the genome-wide off-target activity of two CRISPR-associated RNA-guided endonucleases, Cas9 and Cpf1, observing that Cpf1 has higher specificity than Cas9. Our results establish BLISS as a versatile, sensitive and efficient method for genome-wide DSB mapping in many applications.National Institute of General Medical Sciences (U.S.) (Grant T32GM007753)National Institute of Mental Health (U.S.) (Grant 5DP1-MH100706)National Institute of Mental Health (U.S.) (Grant 1R01-MH110049

Effects of nitrogen reduction rates on grain yield and nitrogen utilization in a wheat-maize rotation system in yellow cinnamon soil

Excessive nitrogen (N) fertilizer application severely degrades soil and contaminates the atmosphere and water. A 2-year field experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of different N fertilizer strategies on wheat-summer corn rotation systems in yellow-brown soil areas. The experiment consisted of seven treatments: no N fertilization (CK), conventional fertilization (FP), optimized fertilization (CF), reduced N rates of 10% (90% FP), 20% (80% FP), 30% (70% FP), and a combination of controlled release with conventional urea at 7:3 ratio (CRU). The results indicate that under the condition of 80% FP, both CF and CRU treatments can increase the yield of wheat and corn for two consecutive years. Compared with FP treatment, the wheat yield of CF and CRU treatments increased by 3.62–2.57% and maize yield by 3.53–1.85% with N fertilizer recovery rate (NRE) of crops by 46.2–37.8%. The agronomic N use efficiency (aNUE) under CF treatment increased by 35.4–37.7%, followed by CRU, which increased by 30.5–33.9%. Moreover, compared with FP treatment, both CF and CRU treatment increased the content of organic matter (OM), total N (TN), and hydrolyzed N (HN) in the topsoil layer, and 70% FP treatment significantly reduced the HN content. Both CF and CRU treatments significantly increased the NO3 concentrations in the 0–20 cm soil depth during the wheat and maize season at maturity stages and decreased the residual inorganic N below the plow layer (40–60 cm). During the corn season, the CF and CRU treatments significantly reduced the NO3 concentration in the 40–60 cm soil layer from seedling to jointing. Considering various factors, CRU treatment under 80% FP conditions would be the best fertilization measure for wheat-corn rotation in yellow-brown soil areas

Job burnout among primary healthcare workers during COVID-19 pandemic: cross-sectional study in China

ObjectiveThis study evaluated job burnout among primary healthcare workers (PHCWs) in China during the COVID-19 pandemic, explored its influencing factors, and examined PHCWs' preferences for reducing job burnout.MethodWe conducted a multicenter cross-sectional study in Heilongjiang, Sichuan, Anhui, Gansu, and Shandong Provinces. An electronic questionnaire survey was conducted through convenience sampling in communities from May to July 2022. We collected sociodemographic characteristics, job burnout level, job satisfaction, and preferred ways to reduce job burnout among PHCWs.ResultsThe job burnout rate among PHCWs in China was 59.87% (937/1565). Scores for each dimension of job burnout were lower among PHCWs who had a better work environment (emotional exhaustion OR: 0.60; depersonalization OR: 0.73; personal accomplishment OR: 0.76) and higher professional pride (emotional exhaustion OR: 0.63; depersonalization OR: 0.70; personal accomplishment OR: 0.44). PHCWs with higher work intensity (emotional exhaustion OR: 2.37; depersonalization OR: 1.34; personal accomplishment OR: 1.19) had higher scores in all job burnout dimensions. Improving work environments and raising salaries were the preferred ways for PHCWs to reduce job burnout.ConclusionStrategies should be developed to improve job satisfaction among PHCWs, enhance their professional identity, and alleviate burnout to ensure the effective operation of the healthcare system, especially during periods of overwork

Protein-retention expansion microscopy of cells and tissues labeled using standard fluorescent proteins and antibodies

Expansion microscopy (ExM) enables imaging of preserved specimens with nanoscale precision on diffraction-limited instead of specialized super-resolution microscopes. ExM works by physically separating fluorescent probes after anchoring them to a swellable gel. The first ExM method did not result in the retention of native proteins in the gel and relied on custom-made reagents that are not widely available. Here we describe protein retention ExM (proExM), a variant of ExM in which proteins are anchored to the swellable gel, allowing the use of conventional fluorescently labeled antibodies and streptavidin, and fluorescent proteins. We validated and demonstrated the utility of proExM for multicolor super-resolution (~70 nm) imaging of cells and mammalian tissues on conventional microscopes.United States. National Institutes of Health (1R01GM104948)United States. National Institutes of Health (1DP1NS087724)United States. National Institutes of Health ( NIH 1R01EY023173)United States. National Institutes of Health (1U01MH106011

Discovery and engineering of antiviral defense systems in bacteria and archaea

Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Biological Engineering, September, 2020Cataloged from the official PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references.Viruses are the most abundant and diverse life form on Earth. With over 10³¹ viral particles in existence, viruses fundamentally shape global biogeochemistry and ecology. Most viruses infect bacteria, archaea, and other microbes, and the threat of infection continually challenges microbes' survival. As a consequence of this expansive war, bacteria and archaea have acquired a potent arsenal of molecular defense systems in order to survive. Known defense systems, such as CRISPR, have given rise to transformative technologies including genome editing. However, defense systems as a whole remain underexplored. Continued investigation of these systems and the warfare between microbes and viruses may lead not only to a better understanding of basic microbiology and evolution, but also to new technologies and therapeutic applications. In this thesis, we investigate the collective arsenal of molecular defense systems that bacteria and archaea use to fight viral infections. First, we focus on known defense systems and use protein engineering to increase the specificity and targeting range of CRISPR enzymes for human genome editing. Second, by computational mining and experimental reconstitution, we discover 29 novel defense gene cassettes that are collectively present in one third of all sequenced bacterial and archaeal genomes. These systems incorporate enzymatic activities not previously implicated in antiviral defense, including RNA editing and retron satellite DNA synthesis. In addition, we predict a diverse set of other putative defense genes that remain to be characterized. These results highlight an immense array of molecular functions that bacteria and archaea employ against viruses.by Linyi Gao.Ph. D.Ph.D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Biological Engineerin

Hegemonic Gaze: Tyranny, Media Chauvinism and the Image of Women - Based on Chinese Mainstream Media’s News Coverage of Ailing Gu's Winter Olympics Victory

During the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, Chinese freeskier Ailing Gu received much media attention. Past literature and journalistic practice on the media and sport suggest that sport has been an area of absolute male hegemony since ancient times and that the media is constructed around hegemonic male values that help to reinforce ‘historical gender norms. This paper examines the construction of Ailing Gu’s image of the ‘other’ in the media frameworks and discourses based on news stories about her in the official and commercial media. The study finds that the deconstruction of Ailing Gu’s image as an athlete in the news coverage, which appears to reinforce the discourse of female athletes, still serves the ultimate goal of male domination and remains, in essence, a chauvinistic and hegemonic gaze