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Background/Aims@#Low educational attainment is a well-established risk factor for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in developed areas. However, the association between educational attainment and the risk of NAFLD is less clear in China. @*Methods@#A cross-sectional study including over 200,000 Chinese adults across mainland China was conducted. Information on education level and lifestyle factors were obtained through standard questionnaires, while NAFLD and advanced fibrosis were diagnosed using validated formulas. Outcomes included the risk of NAFLD in the general population and high probability of fibrosis among patients with NAFLD. Logistic regression analysis was employed to estimate the risk of NAFLD and fibrosis across education levels. A causal mediation model was used to explore the potential mediators. @*Results@#Comparing with those receiving primary school education, the multi-adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) for NAFLD were 1.28 (1.16 to 1.41) for men and 0.94 (0.89 to 0.99) for women with college education after accounting for body mass index. When considering waist circumference, the odds ratios (95% CIs) were 0.94 (0.86 to 1.04) for men and 0.88 (0.80 to 0.97) for women, respectively. The proportions mediated by general and central obesity were 51.00% and 68.04% for men, while for women the proportions were 48.58% and 32.58%, respectively. Furthermore, NAFLD patients with lower educational attainment showed an incremental increased risk of advanced fibrosis in both genders. @*Conclusions@#In China, a low education level was associated with a higher risk of prevalent NAFLD in women, as well as high probability of fibrosis in both genders.
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Background@#and Purpose We investigated the causal relationships between the gut microbiota (GM), stroke, and potential metabolite mediators using Mendelian randomization (MR). @*Methods@#We leveraged the summary statistics of GM (n=18,340 in the MiBioGen consortium), blood metabolites (n=115,078 in the UK Biobank), and stroke (cases n=60,176 and controls n=1,310,725 in the Global Biobank Meta-Analysis Initiative) from the largest genome-wide association studies to date. We performed bidirectional MR analyses to explore the causal relationships between the GM and stroke, and two mediation analyses, two-step MR and multivariable MR, to discover potential mediating metabolites. @*Results@#Ten taxa were causally associated with stroke, and stroke led to changes in 27 taxa. In the two-step MR, Bifidobacteriales order, Bifidobacteriaceae family, Desulfovibrio genus, apolipoprotein A1 (ApoA1), phospholipids in high-density lipoprotein (HDL_PL), and the ratio of apolipoprotein B to ApoA1 (ApoB/ApoA1) were causally associated with stroke (all P<0.044). The causal associations between Bifidobacteriales order, Bifidobacteriaceae family and stroke were validated using the weighted median method in an independent cohort. The three GM taxa were all positively associated with ApoA1 and HDL_PL, whereas Desulfovibrio genus was negatively associated with ApoB/ApoA1 (all P<0.010). Additionally, the causal associations between the three GM taxa and ApoA1 remained significant after correcting for the false discovery rate (all q-values <0.027). Multivariable MR showed that the associations between Bifidobacteriales order, Bifidobacteriaceae family and stroke were mediated by ApoA1 and HDL_PL, each accounting for 6.5% (P=0.028) and 4.6% (P=0.033); the association between Desulfovibrio genus and stroke was mediated by ApoA1, HDL_PL, and ApoB/ApoA1, with mediated proportions of 7.6% (P=0.019), 4.2% (P=0.035), and 9.1% (P=0.013), respectively. @*Conclusion@#The current MR study provides evidence supporting the causal relationships between several specific GM taxa and stroke and potential mediating metabolites.
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Objective:To investigate the correlation between exposure to famine in early life and later risk of type 2 diabetes in adulthood.Methods:A cluster sampling method was used to include 8 868 residents who were lived in the Jiading community of Shanghai during the Great Famine from 1959 to 1962 in China. Subjects were divided into non-exposed group, fetal exposure group, childhood exposure group, and adolescent exposure group. Logistic regression model was used to analyze the relationship between famine exposure in early life and the risk of type 2 diabetes in adulthood. Results:Famine exposure during childhood and adolescent both increased the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in adulthood in women. No significant correlation was observed in men. In subjects with less physical activity and lower education level, the risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus in adulthood was significantly higher in the famine-exposed group than that of non-exposed groupand the interactions were statistically significant.Conclusion:Early life famine exposure increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in adults, especially in women.
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Objective To study on glycogen assay,polymerae chain reaction,and cell culture for diagnostic value of chlamydia infection of vervical smeat.Methods 106 specimens were examined by using glycogen assay,PCR and cell culture.Results Compared with cell culture,the sensitivity and specifity of glycogen assay are 80.0% and 95.8% ,and the sensitivity and specifity of PCR are 90.0% and 97.9% ,respectively.Conclusion The glycogen assay possesses diagnostic value for chlamydia trachomatis infection of vervical smear.