Similarity recognition approach to identify zero-added MSG soy sauce using stable isotopes and amino acid profiles

Seasonings such as naturally fermented soy sauce without added monosodium glutamate (MSG), are currently a growth market in China. However, fraudulent and mislabeled zero-added MSG soy sauce may cause a risk of excessive MSG intake, increasing food safety issues for consumers. This study investigates stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes and 16 amino acids in typical Chinese in-market soy sauces and uses a similarity method to establish criteria to authenticate MSG addition claims. Results reveal most zero-added MSG soy sauces had lower δ13C values (−25.2 ‰ to −17.7 ‰) and glutamic acid concentrations (8.97 mg mL−1 to 34.76 mg mL−1), and higher δ15N values (−0.27 ‰ +0.95 ‰) and other amino acid concentrations than added-MSG labeled samples. A combined approach, using isotopes, amino acids, similarity coefficients and uncertainty values, was evaluated to rapidly and accurately identify zero-added MSG soy sauces from MSG containing counterparts.Universidade de Vigo/CISU

The role of tonal information during spoken-word recognition in Chinese: Evidence from a printed-word eye-tracking study

Two experiments were conducted to investigate the extent to which the lexical tone can affect spoken-word recognition in Chinese using a printed-word paradigm. Participants were presented with a visual display of four words-namely, a target word (e.g., (sic),xiang4xian4, "quadrant"), a tone-consistent phonological competitor (e.g., (sic), xiang4ce4, "photo album"), or a tone-inconsistent phonological competitor (e.g., ,xiang1cai4, "coriander"), and two unrelated distractors. Simultaneously, they were asked to listen to a spoken target word presented in isolation (Experiment1) or embedded in neutral/predictive sentence contexts (Experiment2), and then click on the target word on the screen. Results showed significant phonological competitor effects (i.e., the fixation proportion on the phonological competitor was higher than that on the distractors) under both tone conditions. Specifically, a larger phonological competitor effect was observed in the tone-consistent condition than in the tone-inconsistent condition when the spoken word was presented in isolation and the neutral sentence contexts. This finding suggests a partial role of lexical tone in constraining spoken-word recognition. However, when embedded in a predictive sentence context, the phonological competitor effect was only observed in the tone-consistent condition and absent in the tone-inconsistent condition. This result indicates that the predictive sentence context can strengthen the role of lexical tone

Non-suicidal self-injury and suicidal ideation among adolescents: the chain-mediating role of rumination and decentering

ObjectiveTo explore the relationship between non-suicidal self-injury and suicidal ideation in adolescents and examine the roles of rumination and decentering in that relationship.MethodBy means of a questionnaire, 175 adolescent patients in a psychiatric hospital in Fujian Province were given the Functional Assessment of Self-Mutilation: Chinese Version, Positive and Negative Suicide Ideation, Ruminative Response Scale: Chinese Version, and Experiences Questionnaire: Decentering Scale.Results(1) Adolescent non-suicidal self-injury was significantly positively related to suicidal ideation and rumination and significantly negatively related to decentering. Suicidal ideation was significantly positively related to rumination and significantly negatively related to decentering. Rumination was significantly negatively related to decentering. (2) Rumination and decentering played a complete chain-mediating role between non-suicidal self-injury and suicidal ideation. Non-suicidal self-injury was found to indirectly affect suicidal ideation along three pathways: the independent mediating role of rumination (the mediating effect accounted for 40.166%), independent mediating role of decentering (the mediating effect accounted for 41.274%), and chain-mediating role of rumination and decentering (the mediating effect accounted for 14.958%).ConclusionAdolescent non-suicidal self-injury can indirectly affect suicidal ideation through rumination and decentering. In the future, mindfulness and other methods should be used to improve individuals’ levels of decentering and cultivate emotional regulation abilities, so as to reduce the incidence of non-suicidal self-injury and suicide in adolescents

Continuous Fabrication and Assembly of Spatial Cell-Laden Fibers for a Tissue-Like Construct via a Photolithographic-Based Microfluidic Chip

Engineering three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds with in vivo like architecture and function has shown great potential for tissue regeneration. Here we developed a facile microfluidic-based strategy for the continuous fabrication of cell-laden microfibers with hierarchically organized architecture. We show that photolithographically fabricated microfluidic devices offer a simple and reliable way to create anatomically inspired complex structures. Furthermore, the use of photo-cross-linkable methacrylated alginate allows modulation of both the mechanical properties and biological activity of the hydrogels for targeted applications. Via this approach, multilayered hollow microfibers were continuously fabricated, which can be easily assembled in situ, using 3D printing, into a larger, tissue-like construct. Importantly, this biomimetic approach promoted the development of phenotypical functions of the target tissue. As a model to engineer a complex tissue construct, osteon-like fiber was biomimetically engineered, and enhanced vasculogenic and osteogenic expression were observed in the encapsulated human umbilical cord vein endothelial cells and osteoblast-like MG63 cells respectively within the osteon fibers. The capability of this approach to create functional building blocks will be advantageous for bottom-up regeneration of complex, large tissue defects and, more broadly, will benefit a variety of applications in tissue engineering and biomedical research

The Effect of Longitudinal Trajectories of Triglyceride-glucose Index on the New-onset Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Diseases

BackgroundTriglyceride glucose index (TyG) at baseline is an important influencing factor of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases (CVD) , but there is still a lack of prospective cohort studies on the influence of TyG longitudinal trajectory on new-onset CVD at home and abroad.ObjectiveTo explore the influence of TyG longitudinal trajectory on the occurrence of new-onset CVD.MethodsThe Kailuan Study has been followed up every 2 years that began in 2006. A prospective cohort study method was used to select those who participated in three consecutive health examinations in 2006, 2008, and 2010, with complete triacylglycerol and blood glucose levels, and no history of malignant tumors, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases as the observation objects. The 2010 health check-up time point was used as the starting point for the follow-up, and the occurrence of CVD, death or the end of the follow-up (2017-12-31) was used as the end point of the follow-up. SAS Proc Traj program was used to establish the trajectory model of the research object TyG, four different groups were determine daccording to the longitudinal trajectories of TyG: low-stable group, medium and low-stable group, medium and high-stable group, and high-stable group. The general data and laboratory observation indicatorsof the patients were collected and the Cox proportional hazard model was used to analyze the influence of TyG longitudinal trajectory on new-onset CVD.ResultsA total of 54 258 subjects meeting the inclusion criteriawere included, including 13 150 cases (24.24%) in the low-stable group, 28 488 cases (52.50%) in the medium-low-stable group, 10 808 cases (19.92%) in the medium-high-stable group, and 1 812 cases (3.34%) cases in the high-stable group. There were statistically significant differences in the age, gender, BMI, heart rate, TyG2006, TyG2008, TyG2010, HDL-C, LDL-C, UA, hs-CRP, TG, FBG, ALT, smoking, drinking, and physical exercise and the proportion of taking lipid-lowering drugs among different groups (P<0.05) . The subjects were followed up for (6.73±1.12) years, and a total of 2 267 cases of CVD occurred, including 499 cases of acute myocardial infarction and 1 800 cases of stroke. There were significant difference in the cumulative incidence of CVD of patients among different TyG longitudinal trajectory groups (P<0.05) . Cox regression analysis showed after adjusting for confounding factors, the HR value (95%CI) of CVD in each group were 1.29 (1.14, 1.46) , 1.40 (1.20, 1.63) and 1.76 (1.41, 2.20) when compared with the low-stable group; the HR value (95%CI) for acute myocardial infarctionwere 1.48 (1.10, 1.98) , 1.91 (1.36, 2.69) and 2.03 (1.22, 3.36) in each group when compared with the low-stable group; the HR value (95%CI) for stroke were 1.23 (1.07, 1.42) , 1.27 (1.07, 1.50) and 1.63 (1.27, 2.08) in each group; the HR value (95%CI) for ischemic strokewere 1.25 (1.08, 1.45) , 1.35 (1.12, 1.60) and 1.77 (1.37, 2.30) in each group.ConclusionThe increased longitudinal trajectory of TyG index is a risk factor for the incidence of CVD and is independent of the baseline of TyG index

Characteristics of Tibetan medicine preparations used in the Chinese-Tibetan Hospital of Derong County

Purpose: To investigate the Tibetan medicine preparations used in Derong Chinese-Tibetan Hospital. Methods: In this study, 115 preparations were collected from the Chinese-Tibetan Hospital of Derong County. A statistical table of information on medicine preparation was prepared in Excel format, and it included information on the forms of preparations, medicinal materials, medicinal parts used, frequency of use, and clinical applications. Results: The 115 preparations were mainly pills. In clinics, they were used for treating liver disease, stomach-ache, gastric ulcer, nephrotic pain and fever. It was found that 226 medicines were used in various preparations. The plant components used varied from whole herbs, fruits, seeds, roots, rhizomes, and animal-based medicines, to flowers. The most frequently used plants/herbs were Terminalia chebula Retz., Carthamus tinctorius L., Aucklandia lappa Decne., Alpinia katsumadai Hayata and Phyllanthus emblica L. The most commonly used drug combinations involved three fruits (Terminalia chebula Retz., Terminalia billerica (Gaertn.) Roxb and Phyllanthus emblica L.). The preparations and medicinal materials used for liver and stomach diseases are described in detail in this article. These include Terminalia chebula Retz., Aucklandia lappa Decne. and Carthamus tinctorius L. Conclusion: The study has analysed the characteristics and clinical uses of Tibetan medicine preparations and summarised the diseases and medicinal materials in the Tibetan area. These preparations and medicinal materials, with their many years of clinical use, may become invaluable gifts of Tibetan medicine to the world

Metabolic profiling of Apostichopus japonicus body wall exposed to a typical type of PBDEs: potential health risks and impact on sea cucumber health

IntroductionSea cucumbers are cultivated mainly for their valuable body wall. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers are common persistent pollutants in sea waters with known impacts on aquatic animals nonetheless not yet studied for the body wall of sea cucumbers.MethodsUsing ltra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Triple-TOF-MS), we investigated the metabolic impact of 2,2',4,4'-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47) on the body wall of Apostichopus japonicus. etabolite changes and metabolic pathway alterations were assessed in response to three distinct concentrations of BDE-47: 0.1 µg/L, 1.0 µg/L, and 10.0 µg/L.REsultsExposure to BDE-47 led to notable alterations in the metabolic profiles of the body wall. A total of 95~102 metabolites in the 0.1 ~ 10.0 µg/L BDE-47 treated group were altered significantly, and various disrupted metabolic pathways were identified and characterized. These metabolites and metabolic pathways were mainly involved in lipid metabolism, energy metabolism, immunity, oxidative stress, inflammation, and neurotoxicity.DiscussionThe findings of our study shed light on the potential health risks that polybrominated diphenyl ethers present to sea cucumbers. This underscores the imperative for both researchers and policymakers to delve deeper into further investigations and studies. These results indicate the necessity for enhanced monitoring and management practices within the sea cucumber aquaculture industry to mitigate the impact of these persistent organic pollutants and protect the health and safety of this valuable resource

Knowledge and Attitudes Towards Obesity and Bariatric Surgery in Chinese Nurses

Abstract Background Obesity has become a global epidemic. Surgical treatment of obesity and metabolic disorders in China is increasing rapidly, but it is still a new discipline even to health professionals. As an important member of the multidisciplinary team, the knowledge and attitudes of nurses provide crucial health care to the patients and support to surgeons. Objectives To study the Chinese nurses' knowledge of obesity and metabolic disorders, and attitudes towards bariatric surgery and to improve their capability of work in this new discipline. Methods This is a multicenter study, with the questionnaire distributed to cooperative hospitals in the form of an electronic questionnaire by the First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University in April 2018. A questionnaire was designed to investigate nurses' demographic, knowledge, and attitude towards obesity, weight loss, and bariatric surgery. Results A total of 5311 questionnaires were received, with an effective rate of 91.8% (4878 questionnaires); 65.2% of nurses had a normal BMI. Nurses generally had a high knowledge of obesity and related cardiovascular diseases (98.6%) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (90.2%). However, there was a lack of knowledge in other related aspects, for example its relations to carcinoma (49.5%), gastroesophageal reflux disease (40.1%), and psychological disorders (49.1%), which are controversial issues in bariatric surgery. It was found that education (p < 0.05) had an important influence to nurses' knowledge about the comorbidities of obesity. Female nurses had a higher tendency to choose weight loss than males, but male nurses did physical exercise more frequently than females (p < 0.05). Their acceptance of safety (25.1%) and efficacy (22.9%) of bariatric surgery is low, with concerns predominantly about postoperative complications and adverse effects. Surgical nurses had a more optimistic attitude towards surgery (p < 0.05). Conclusions Chinese nurses have poor knowledge of obesity-related metabolic disorders and also have poor acceptance of surgical treatment modalities. Our findings suggest that it is crucial to enhance the continuing education of Chinese nurses for obesity, metabolic disorders, and bariatric surgery

Identification of membrane protein types via deep residual hypergraph neural network

A membrane protein's functions are significantly associated with its type, so it is crucial to identify the types of membrane proteins. Conventional computational methods for identifying the species of membrane proteins tend to ignore two issues: High-order correlation among membrane proteins and the scenarios of multi-modal representations of membrane proteins, which leads to information loss. To tackle those two issues, we proposed a deep residual hypergraph neural network (DRHGNN), which enhances the hypergraph neural network (HGNN) with initial residual and identity mapping in this paper. We carried out extensive experiments on four benchmark datasets of membrane proteins. In the meantime, we compared the DRHGNN with recently developed advanced methods. Experimental results showed the better performance of DRHGNN on the membrane protein classification task on four datasets. Experiments also showed that DRHGNN can handle the over-smoothing issue with the increase of the number of model layers compared with HGNN. The code is available at https://github.com/yunfighting/Identification-of-Membrane-Protein-Types-via-deep-residual-hypergraph-neural-network