Decomposition and comparative analysis of depressive symptoms between older adults living alone and with others in China

ObjectiveThis research dealt with investigating and measuring the contribution of the factors that impact depression in older adults living alone vs. those living with others (hereafter referred to as “not alone”) in China.DesignThis investigation adopts a cross-sectional research design. The dataset employed for this study comprises data from 2018 the Chinese Longitudinal Health Longevity Survey (CLHLS).SettingThe research involved data sourced from China, specifically from 23 of its provinces. From the 8th CLHLS, 12,197 older adults were selected who met the study requirements.MeasuresBinary logistic regression models were established to delve into the primary factors impacting the depressive symptoms of the individuals. Furthermore, Fairlie models were employed to assess these factors between older adults living alone and those not living alone. This approach facilitated an in-depth analysis of their respective contributions.ResultsIt was observed that the demographic of Chinese older adults exhibited depressive symptoms at a rate of 11.92%. Older adults who resided alone (15.76%) exhibited a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms in comparison to their counterparts living in not-alone settings (11.15%). Employing Fairlie decomposition analysis, it was determined that this observed disparity in depressive symptoms, amounting to 55.33% of the overall difference, could be primarily attributed to distinct factors. This encompassed variance in marital status (20.55%), years of school (4.63%), self-reported local income status (7.25%), self-reported sleep status (17.56%), and self-reported health status (4.24%).ConclusionThe resulting data indicated that depressive symptoms exhibited an elevated prevalence in older adults living alone than in those living not alone. This discrepancy was predominantly attributed to variance in socioeconomic marital status, years of school, self-reported local income status, self-reported sleep status, and self-reported health status by living alone vs. not alone. Mitigating these influential factors could help develop targeted and meticulous intervention strategies, precisely tailored to improve the mental well-being of older adults at high risk

Maleic anhydride-modified chicken ovalbumin as an effective and inexpensive anti-HIV microbicide candidate for prevention of HIV sexual transmission

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Previous studies have shown that 3-hydroxyphthalic anhydride (HP)-modified bovine milk protein, β-lactoglobulin (β-LG), is a promising microbicide candidate. However, concerns regarding the potential risk of prion contamination in bovine products and carcinogenic potential of phthalate derivatives were raised. Here we sought to replace bovine protein with an animal protein of non-bovine origin and substitute HP with another anhydride for the development of anti-HIV microbicide for preventing HIV sexual transmission.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Maleic anhydride (ML), succinic anhydride (SU) and HP at different conditions and variable pH values were used for modification of proteins. All the anhydrate-modified globulin-like proteins showed potent anti-HIV activity, which is correlated with the percentage of modified lysine and arginine residues in the modified protein. We selected maleic anhydride-modified ovalbumin (ML-OVA) for further study because OVA is easier to obtain than β-LG, and ML is safer than HP. Furthermore, ML-OVA exhibited broad antiviral activities against HIV-1, HIV-2, SHIV and SIV. This modified protein has no or low <it>in vitro </it>cytotoxicity to human T cells and vaginal epithelial cells. It is resistant to trypsin hydrolysis, possibly because the lysine and arginine residues in OVA are modified by ML. Mechanism studies suggest that ML-OVA inhibits HIV-1 entry by targeting gp120 on HIV-1 virions and also the CD4 receptor on the host cells.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>ML-OVA is a potent HIV fusion/entry inhibitor with the potential to be developed as an effective, safe and inexpensive anti-HIV microbicide.</p

3-Hydroxyphthalic Anhydride- Modified Rabbit Anti-PAP IgG as a Potential Bifunctional HIV-1 Entry Inhibitor

Several studies have reported that amyloid fibrils in human semen formed from a naturally occurring peptide fragment of prostatic acidic phosphatase (PAP248-286), known as semen-derived enhancer of viral infection (SEVI), could dramatically enhance human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection. Accordingly, SEVI might serve as a novel target for new antiviral drugs or microbicide candidates for the prevention of sexually transmitted HIV. Theoretically, a special anti-PAP or anti-SEVI antibody could reduce the enhancement of viral infection by blocking the binding of HIV and SEVI fibrils. Here, 3-hydroxyphthalic anhydride modified anti-PAP248-286 antibody, named HP-API, exhibited broad-spectrum and highly effective anti-HIV-1 activities on different subtypes and tropism. By using time-of-addition, cell–cell fusion and a single-cycle HIV-1 infection assays, we demonstrated that HP-API is an HIV-1 entry/fusion inhibitor. Mechanism studies suggest that HP-API inhibited HIV-1 entry/fusion by targeting both HIV-1 gp120 envelop and CD4 receptor on the host cell specifically. It is noteworthy that HP-API abrogated the formation of SEVI fibrils and partially interfered with SEVI-mediated enhancement of HIV-1 infection. Based on these findings, HP-API could be considered a bifunctional HIV-1 entry/fusion inhibitor with high potential

Polyanionic candidate microbicides accelerate the formation of semen-derived amyloid fibrils to enhance HIV-1 infection.

Polyanionic candidate microbicides, including cellulose sulfate, carrageenan, PRO 2000, were proven ineffective in preventing HIV-1 transmission and even cellulose sulfate showed increased risk of HIV acquisition in the Phase III efficacy trials. Semen plays critical roles in HIV-1 sexual transmission. Specifically, amyloid fibrils formed by fragments of prostatic acidic phosphatase (PAP) in semen termed semen-derived enhancer of virus infection (SEVI) could drastically enhance HIV-1 infection. Here we investigated the interaction between polyanions and PAP248-286, a prototype peptide of SEVI, to understand the possible cause of polyanionic candidate microbicides to fail in clinical trials. We found anionic polymers could efficiently promote SEVI fibril formation, most likely mediated by the natural electrostatic interaction between polyanions and PAP248-286, as revealed by acid native PAGE and Western blot. The overall anti-HIV-1 activity of polyanions in the presence or absence of PAP248-286 or semen was evaluated. In the viral infection assay, the supernatants of polyanions/PAP248-286 or polyanions/semen mixtures containing the free, unbound polyanionic molecules showed a general reduction in antiviral efficacy, while the pellets containing amyloid fibrils formed by the polyanion-bound PAP248-286 showed aggravated enhancement of viral infection. Collectively, from the point of drug-host protein interaction, our study revealed that polyanions facilitate SEVI fibril formation to promote HIV-1 infection, thus highlighting a molecular mechanism underlying the failure of polyanions in clinical trials and the importance of drug-semen interaction in evaluating the anti-HIV-1 efficacy of candidate microbicides

Genomic signature and mutation trend analysis of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza A virus.

A novel swine-origin pandemic influenza A(H1N1) virus (H1N1pdm, also referred to as S-OIV) was identified as the causative agent of the 21(st) century's first influenza pandemic, but molecular features conferring its ability of human-to-human transmission has not been identified. Here we compared the protein sequences of 2009 H1N1pdm strains with those causing other pandemics and the viruses isolated from humans, swines and avians, and then analyzed the mutation trend of the residues at the signature and non-signature positions, which are species- and non-species-associated, respectively, in the proteins of H1N1pdm during the pandemic of 2009. We confirmed that the host-specific genomic signatures of 2009 H1N1pdm, which are mainly swine-like, were highly identical to those of the 1918 H1N1pdm. During the short period of time when the pandemic alert level was raised from phase 4 to phase 6, one signature residue at the position of NP-100 mutated from valine to isoleucine. Four non-signature residues, at positions NA-91, NA-233, HA-206, and NS1-123, also changed during the epidemic in 2009. All these mutant residues, except that at NA-91, are located in the viral functional domains, suggesting that they may play roles in the human adaption and virulence of 2009 H1N1pdm

Synthesis of novel erdite nanorods for the activation of peroxymonosulfate during p-nitrophenol wastewater treatment

Fe-bearing salt and minerals are common reagents used in activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for Fenton-like oxidation in wastewater treatment. Fe-bearing reagents are used in mass production, which generate abundant Fe-bearing waste sludge in the absence of a reductant for Fe /Fe cycling. Herein, a novel Fe/S-bearing mineral, erdite, was synthesized with a one-step hydrothermal route. The material exerted an Fe/S synergetic effect for p-nitrophenol degradation upon PMS activation and showed a one-dimensional structure similar to that of (FeS ) . It contained short rods with diameters of 100 nm and lengths ranging from 200 to 400 nm. It grew radically to 0.8–2 μm in length upon the addition of MnO . Ps-0.5, prepared by adding MnO in an Mn/Fe molar ratio of 0.5, showed optimal efficiency in removing approximately 99.4% of p-nitrophenol upon PMS activation. Only 3.3% of p-nitrophenol was removed without MnO . The efficiency of p-nitrophenol removal through Ps-0.5 activation was higher than that through FeSO , nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI), CuFeS , and MnSO activation. The formed erdite rods were spontaneously hydrolyzed to Fe/S-bearing flocs, in which an electron was used by structural S to reduce Fe to Fe upon PMS activation. The reduction resulted in a high p-nitrophenol removal rate. This study provided new insight into the development of an effective PMS activator in wastewater treatment

Penicillixanthone A, a marine-derived dual-coreceptor antagonist as anti-HIV-1 agent

<p>Marine micro-organisms have been proven to be excellent sources of bioactive compounds against HIV-1. Several natural products obtained from marine-derived <i>Aspergillus</i> fungi were screened for their activities to inhibit HIV-1 infection. Penicillixanthone A (PXA), a natural xanthone dimer from jellyfish-derived fungus <i>Aspergillus fumigates</i>, displayed potent anti-HIV-1 activity by inhibiting infection against CCR5-tropic HIV-1 SF162 and CXCR4-tropic HIV-1 NL4-3, with IC₅₀ of 0.36 and 0.26 μM, respectively. Molecular docking study was conducted to understand the possible binding mode of PXA with the CCR5/CXCR4. The results revealed that, the marine-derived PXA, as a CCR5/CXCR4 dual-coreceptor antagonist, presents a new type of potential lead product for the development of anti-HIV therapeutics.</p

Effects of Washing, Autoclaving, and Surfactants on the Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Negatively Valued Paper Mill Sludge for Sugar Production

Paper mill sludge (PMS) is a paper industry waste but can be a potential feedstock for cellulosic sugar production. In this study, washing, autoclaving, and surfactants were investigated for PMS pretreatment before enzymatic hydrolysis to produce cellulosic sugars. It was demonstrated that washing and autoclaving had a limited impact on improving the enzymatic hydrolysis of PMS but washing reduced the ash content, resulting in less acid being used in neutralization. Adding nonionic surfactants of Triton X-100, Tween 80, and PEG 8000 improved the conversion of PMS, and the highest rates were 56.3% and 55.4%, achieved by adding 1% Triton X-100 and 5% PEG 8000, respectively. The lowest conversion rates were produced by 1% and 5% Tween 80, probably because it had a hydrophobic alkyl chain. After the optimization of the enzyme and PMS concentrations in hydrolysis via supplementation with PEG 8000, the highest PMS conversion of 74.7% was achieved by 10% PMS and 3% enzymes. With the addition of PEG 8000, the conversion of PMS was reduced at high concentrations of enzyme and PMS compared with that of the non-PEG control, which was more significant at the later stage of hydrolysis. We proposed that the combined negative effects of end products and surfactants were more significant on hydrolysis than the effects of end products alone

Table_1_Decomposition and comparative analysis of depressive symptoms between older adults living alone and with others in China.docx

ObjectiveThis research dealt with investigating and measuring the contribution of the factors that impact depression in older adults living alone vs. those living with others (hereafter referred to as “not alone”) in China.DesignThis investigation adopts a cross-sectional research design. The dataset employed for this study comprises data from 2018 the Chinese Longitudinal Health Longevity Survey (CLHLS).SettingThe research involved data sourced from China, specifically from 23 of its provinces. From the 8th CLHLS, 12,197 older adults were selected who met the study requirements.MeasuresBinary logistic regression models were established to delve into the primary factors impacting the depressive symptoms of the individuals. Furthermore, Fairlie models were employed to assess these factors between older adults living alone and those not living alone. This approach facilitated an in-depth analysis of their respective contributions.ResultsIt was observed that the demographic of Chinese older adults exhibited depressive symptoms at a rate of 11.92%. Older adults who resided alone (15.76%) exhibited a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms in comparison to their counterparts living in not-alone settings (11.15%). Employing Fairlie decomposition analysis, it was determined that this observed disparity in depressive symptoms, amounting to 55.33% of the overall difference, could be primarily attributed to distinct factors. This encompassed variance in marital status (20.55%), years of school (4.63%), self-reported local income status (7.25%), self-reported sleep status (17.56%), and self-reported health status (4.24%).ConclusionThe resulting data indicated that depressive symptoms exhibited an elevated prevalence in older adults living alone than in those living not alone. This discrepancy was predominantly attributed to variance in socioeconomic marital status, years of school, self-reported local income status, self-reported sleep status, and self-reported health status by living alone vs. not alone. Mitigating these influential factors could help develop targeted and meticulous intervention strategies, precisely tailored to improve the mental well-being of older adults at high risk.</p