Evaluating the impact of school-based influenza vaccination programme on absenteeism and outbreaks at schools in Hong Kong: a retrospective cohort study protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Seasonal influenza causes annual school breaks and student absenteeism in Hong Kong schools and kindergartens. This proposal aims to conduct a retrospective cohort study to evaluate the impact of a school-based influenza vaccination (SIV) programme on absenteeism and outbreaks at schools in Hong Kong. METHODS: The study will compare schools that implemented the SIV programme with schools that did not. The data will be sourced from school records, encompassing absenteeism records, outbreak reports, and vaccination rates. We will recruit 1000 students from 381 schools and kindergartens in 18 districts of Hong Kong starting June 2024. The primary outcome measures will include absenteeism rates due to influenza and school influenza outbreaks. Secondary outcomes will consist of vaccination coverage rates and the impact of the SIV programme on hospitalisations due to influenza-like illness. A t-test will be conducted to compare the outcomes between schools with and without the SIV programme. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The school completed signing the participants' informed consent form before reporting the data to us. Our study has been approved by the Hospital Authority Hong Kong West Cluster IRB Committee (IRB No: UW 17-111) and was a subtopic of the research "The estimated age-group specific influenza vaccine coverage rates in Hong Kong and the impact of the school outreach vaccination program". TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study will be retrospectively registered.

The association of SPARC with hypertension and its function in endothelial-dependent relaxation.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) is involved in the pathological processes of many metabolic diseases. However, studies on the relevance of SPARC to hypertension and its involvement in endothelial function are scarce. In this study, we aim to explore the relevance of SPARC to hypertension and investigate its role in endothelium-dependent relaxation (EDR). METHODS: 110 patients who met the criteria were recruited as participants. Serum SPARC concentrations were determined by Luminex assay. The correlation between SPARC levels and hypertension was analyzed. After treatment with SPARC ex vivo or in vivo, endothelial-dependent relaxation (EDR) was measured by wire myography. Western blotting was performed to detect the expression of proteins relevant to endothelial function. RESULTS: Our results showed that serum SPARC levels were significantly higher in the hypertensive group and were positively associated with systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). Functional results demonstrated that SPARC dramatically impaired EDR and induced the excess production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in endothelial cells. Further experimental results confirmed that SPARC reduced angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) expression and ACE2 overexpression or activation completely abolished the impairing effect of SPARC on endothelial function. CONCLUSIONS: The present study reveals the correlation between elevated SPARC and hypertension and confirms its adverse effect on endothelial function, helping establish a comprehensive understanding of hypertension-related endothelial dysfunction in a new scope.

Land use and rainfall influences on bacterial levels and sources in stormwater ponds.

Urban stormwater runoff is a known source of microbial contamination of stormwater ponds. However, less is known about the influences of land use and rainfall on microbial quality over time in these receiving waters. In this study, two fecal indicator bacteria (FIB), namely Escherichia coli and thermotolerant coliforms, were monitored in three stormwater ponds in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The stormwater ponds were selected due to their potential as water sources for beneficial uses such as irrigation, which requires lower water quality than drinking water, thereby alleviating the pressure on the city's potable water demands. The selected stormwater ponds vary in size and shape, contribution catchment size, and percentages of several primary land use types. Microbial source tracking for human, dog, seagull, Canada goose, ruminant, and muskrat was also conducted to determine sources of bacterial contamination in the stormwater ponds. Sampling was conducted near the pond surface and adjacent to the shoreline, specifically near the outfalls that discharge stormwater runoff into the ponds and the inlets that convey water out of the ponds. Overall, the FIB concentrations in the vicinity of pond outfalls were significantly or relatively higher than those near pond inlets. The contamination in the McCall Lake and the Country Hills stormwater ponds showed higher amounts of human markers (40 to 60%) compared to the Inverness stormwater pond (< 20%), which coincided with their higher FIB concentration medians. The results revealed that stormwater drained from catchments with a higher percentage of commercial land use was more contaminated than those with primary residential land use, while the impacts of residential development on the FIB levels in the Inverness stormwater pond were not obvious. Furthermore, FIB concentrations in the ponds increased in response to both rain events and inter-event dry periods, with human-specific markers being predominant despite the high levels of animal markers during inter-event dry periods. Human-origin sources might be among the main microbial loading contributors in the pond catchments in general. All these findings can inform the development or improvement of measures for mitigating microbial pollution, strategies for reusing stormwater, and maintenance programs.

Significant increase of serum extracellular vesicle-packaged growth differentiation factor 15 in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF15) is a stress-inducible factor involved in the inflammatory progression of many complications, including type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Growing evidence suggests that molecules in extracellular vesicles (EVs) are associated with diabetes or diabetes-related complications. However, the correlation between serum extracellular vesicle-derived growth differentiation factor15 (EV-GDF15) and T2DM is unknown. The aim of this cross-sectional study is to investigate whether serum EV-GDF15 is associated with T2DM incidence. METHODS: 116 individuals, including 78 T2DM and 38 non-T2DM, were recruited as participants. The concentrations of serum EV-GDF15 and serum GDF15 were determined by Luminex assay. Serum EVs were obtained by ultracentrifugation. Multivariate stepwise regression analysis was used to determine the association between serum GDF15 levels and fasting plasma glucose (FPG) as well as glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c). The association of serum EV-GDF15 levels with T2DM was determined by multivariate logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Our data showed that the levels of serum EV-GDF15 and serum GDF15 were significantly increased in T2DM patients compared with non-T2DM subjects (EV-GDF15 levels, 13.68 (6.61-23.44) pg/mL vs. 5.56 (3.44-12.09) pg/mL, P < 0.001; and serum GDF15 levels, 1025.49 (677.87-1626.36) pg/mL vs. 675.46 (469.53-919.98) pg/mL, P < 0.001). There was a linear correlation between EV-GDF15 levels and fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and Hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c) levels (normalized ß = 0.357, P < 0.001; normalized ß = 0.409, P < 0.001, respectively). Elevated levels of EV-GDF15 were accompanied by an increase in the proportion of patients with T2DM (from 47.5 to 78.9%) and a progressive independent association with the incidence of T2DM (from OR = 3.06, 95% CI 1.02-9.19, P = 0.047 to OR = 3.75, 95% CI 1.14-12.26, P = 0.029). Notably, high levels of serum GDF15 plus high levels of serum EV-GDF15 were significantly associated with T2DM more than either alone. CONCLUSION: This study elucidated that increased levels of GDF15 in serum EVs were independently associated with T2DM.

An improved adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system model using conjoined metaheuristic algorithms for electrical conductivity prediction.

Precise prediction of water quality parameters plays a significant role in making an early alert of water pollution and making better decisions for the management of water resources. As one of the influential indicative parameters, electrical conductivity (EC) has a crucial role in calculating the proportion of mineralization. In this study, the integration of an adaptive hybrid of differential evolution and particle swarm optimization (A-DEPSO) with adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) model is adopted for EC prediction. The A-DEPSO method uses unique mutation and crossover processes to correspondingly boost global and local search mechanisms. It also uses a refreshing operator to prevent the solution from being caught inside the local optimal solutions. This study uses A-DEPSO optimizer for ANFIS training phase to eliminate defects and predict accurately the EC water quality parameter every month at the Maroon River in the southwest of Iran. Accordingly, the recorded dataset originated from the Tange-Takab station from 1980 to 2016 was operated to develop the ANFIS-A-DEPSO model. Besides, the wavelet analysis was jointed to the proposed algorithm in which the original time series of EC was disintegrated into the sub-time series through two mother wavelets to boost the prediction certainty. In the following, the comparison between statistical metrics of the standalone ANFIS, least-square support vector machine (LSSVM), multivariate adaptive regression spline (MARS), generalized regression neural network (GRNN), wavelet-LSSVM (WLSSVM), wavelet-MARS (W-MARS), wavelet-ANFIS (W-ANFIS) and wavelet-GRNN (W-GRNN) models was implemented. As a result, it was apparent that not only was the W-ANFIS-A-DEPSO model able to rise remarkably the EC prediction certainty, but W-ANFIS-A-DEPSO (R = 0.988, RMSE = 53.841, and PI = 0.485) also had the edge over other models with Dmey mother in terms of EC prediction. Moreover, the W-ANFIS-A-DEPSO can improve the RMSE compared to the standalone ANFIS-DEPSO model, accounting for 80%. Hence, this model can create a closer approximation of EC value through W-ANFIS-A-DEPSO model, which is likely to act as a promising procedure to simulate the prediction of EC data.

Serum concentrations of small dense low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and lipoprotein(a) are related to coronary arteriostenosis in Takayasu arteritis.

BACKGROUND: Serum small dense low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (sdLDL-C) and lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] levels are related to coronary disease, but their specific associations with coronary arteriostenosis in Takayasu arteritis (TA) have not been ascertained. This study explored the correlations between serum sdLDL-C and Lp(a) levels and coronary arteriostenosis in TA patients as well as the degree of artery stenosis. METHODS: This retrospective study included 190 TA patients and 154 healthy subjects. TA patients were divided into three categories based on the degree of coronary stenosis: Group I, stenosis >50%; Group II, stenosis 1%-50%; and Group III, stenosis 0%. Independent risk factors for coronary arteriostenosis in TA were identified by logistic regression, followed by receiver operating characteristic curve analysis to determine the specificity and sensitivity of risk factors and Youden's Index score calculation to determine the cutoff points. RESULTS: Takayasu arteritis patients had significantly higher serum levels of sdLDL-C and Lp(a) than healthy controls (p < 0.0001). The total cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL-C, sdLDL-C, and Lp(a) levels and the sdLDL-C/LDL-C ratio in Group I were significantly higher than those in Groups II and III (p < 0.05). An elevated serum sdLDL-C level elevated the risk of coronary arteriostenosis by 5-fold (cutoff value, 0.605 mmol/l). An increased serum Lp(a) level increased the risk of coronary arteriostenosis by 3.9-fold (cutoff value, 0.045 g/l). An elevated sdLDL-C/LDL-C ratio increased the risk of coronary arteriostenosis by 2.1-fold (cutoff value, 0.258). CONCLUSIONS: Serum sdLDL-C and Lp(a) levels and sdLDL-C/LDL-C ratio may be used as diagnostic factors for coronary arteriostenosis in TA patients.

Serum C1q concentration is associated with disease activity in Chinese Takayasu arteritis patients: A case-control study.

BACKGROUND: C1q is a crucial component of the classical complement pathway. This study is the first to assess the association between disease activity and serum levels of C1q in Chinese Takayasu arteritis (TA) patients. METHODS: Serum C1q levels in 198 TA patients and 154 healthy controls were assessed, and the relationship between serum C1q levels and indices of TA disease activity was analyzed. Moreover, we examined the correlation between serum C1q levels and two traditional inflammatory biomarkers; erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and hypersensitive CRP (hs-CRP). RESULTS: Serum C1q levels were increased in TA patients compared with healthy controls (P = .008). TA patients with active disease had higher levels of serum C1q than patients who had inactive disease (P < .0001). In addition, treatment-naïve patients had higher serum C1q levels than those who had been treated with corticosteroids or at least one immunosuppressant (P = .001). Furthermore, a positive correlation between serum C1q levels and traditional inflammatory biomarkers in TA patients was found. The role of C1q in assessing disease activity was studied, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of C1q for predicting active disease was 0.752, and a serum cutoff value of 167.15 mg/L C1q maximized the ability of disease activity assessment, with a sensitivity/specificity of 77.80%/64.90%. When the three indicators (C1q, ESR, and hs-CRP) were combined, the AUC increased to 0.845, and the sensitivity to 84.40%. CONCLUSIONS: The serum C1q is associated with the disease activity of TA and the combination of three indicators (C1q, ESR, and hs-CRP) increases the sensitivity of disease activity assessment.

Nutrient leaching behavior of green roofs: Laboratory and field investigations.

Despite the benefits of green roofs in managing stormwater quality, green roofs especially at their early age might leach nutrients. Research in this regard is still very limited. Therefore, this paper conducted both the laboratory and field observations to characterize and model the leaching of nutrients including nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) and to examine the discrepancy in knowledge produced from these two settings. The experiment revealed that the higher the initial nutrient contents of media were, the higher the degree of nutrient leaching was. The nutrient leaching from both the laboratory cells and the field green roof declined temporally, which was largely explained by the cumulative inflow. The semi-physically based nutrient leaching model generally captured the nutrient leaching from both the laboratory cells (R2 in the range of 0.87-0.98) and the field green roof (R2 in the range of 0.28-0.86). The mass balance analysis for the laboratory cells demonstrated that the masses of nutrients leached in outflow were 85-112% of the nutrients reduced in media in general (except P of two laboratory cells). The analysis and modeling results supported that media was the primary source for nutrients leached and the pattern of nutrient leaching was consistent with wash-off being the dominant process. The results also revealed the difference in the P leaching between the laboratory cells and the field green roof. Apart from the wash-off, other chemical and biological processes and/or nutrient sources might play non-negligible roles on the P leaching of the field green roof, implied by the relatively low performance of the models (R2 of approximately 0.30 in both the regression analysis and the nutrient leaching model). The difference observed between the laboratory experiment and the field observation also calls into attention when translating knowledge derived from laboratory experiments into real practice.

A Velocity Meter for Quantifying Advection Velocity Vectors in Large Water Bodies.

A velocity meter was designed and built in order to meet market needs for an affordable instrument that measures the range of velocity magnitudes and direction experienced in medium- to large-sized water bodies. The velocity meter consists of a graduated plate with an injector protruding from the center and a camera held downward above the plate. Once the Dye Injection Velocity (DIV) meter is in the flow, dye is injected and the camera records the dye fluid transport. The recorded video is analyzed to determine the local flow velocity and direction. The DIV was calibrated for a range of velocities between 0.0094 m/s and 0.1566 m/s using particle image velocimetry (PIV) in a flow visualization flume. The accuracy of the instrument was found to be +6.3% and -9.8% of full scale. The coefficient of determination of the calibration curve was equal to 98%. Once calibrated, the DIV was deployed to the Inverness Stormwater pond in Calgary, Canada, for validation tests against an Acoustic Doppler Velocity (ADV) meter. During the validation tests, both flow velocity magnitude and direction were measured at several spatial points. The velocity magnitude results showed good agreement and the Mann-Whitney test showed no statistically significant difference (p-value > 0.05). At two spatial points, the differences between direction data were significant, which could be caused by the random errors involved in the validation test. However, the averaged data showed good agreement.

The relationships of serum homocysteine levels and traditional lipid indicators with disease activity and coronary artery involvement in Takayasu arteritis.

Serum homocysteine (HCY) levels have been associated with the occurrence of coronary stenosis and disease activity in large-vessel vasculitis. However, whether increases in serum HCY levels and traditional lipid indicators are associated with coronary artery involvement and disease activity in Chinese Han Takayasu arteritis (TA) patients is unknown. This study aims to investigate the clinical and laboratory features of TA by assessing their association with disease activity in TA patients, and to explore the risk factors associated with coronary artery involvement in these patients. Serum HCY levels and traditional lipid indicators were tested in one hundred ninety TA patients and one hundred fifty-four healthy controls. We analyzed the relationships of serum HCY levels and traditional lipid indicators with disease activity and analyzed the risk factors for coronary artery involvement. Twenty-one TA patients were found to have coronary artery stenosis (≥ 50%). TA patients had significantly higher levels of HCY than did healthy controls (p < 0.0001). Serum levels of HCY and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C); the ratios of LDL-C to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), total cholesterol (TC) to HDL-C, and triglycerides (TG) to HDL-C; and the values of atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) were significantly higher in patients with active TA than in patients with inactive TA and in TA patients with coronary artery involvement than in TA patients without coronary artery involvement. By contrast, the serum levels of HDL-C were significantly lower in patients with active TA than in patients with inactive TA and in TA patients with coronary artery involvement than in TA patients without coronary artery involvement (p < 0.05). In addition, the serum levels of TC and TG were significantly higher in TA patients with coronary artery involvement than those in TA patients without coronary artery involvement. Elevated serum HCY levels increased the risk of coronary artery involvement by 1.3-fold (p = 0.011, odds ratio [OR] = 1.275, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.056-1.539), and the cutoff value for serum HCY was 9.55 µmol/L. Elevated serum TG levels increased the risk of coronary artery involvement by 3.5-fold (p < 0.0001, OR = 3.534, 95% CI: 1.907-6.547), and the cutoff value for serum TG was 1.215 mmol/L. The risk of coronary artery involvement was 2.5-fold higher when an elevated TG/HDL-C ratio was present (p < 0.0001, OR = 2.513, 95% CI: 1.567-4.032). This study showed that serum HCY and TG levels and the TG/HDL-C ratio are independent risk factors for coronary artery involvement in TA patients.

The impact of media, plants and their interactions on bioretention performance: A review.

Bioretention systems have gained considerable popularity as a more natural approach to stormwater management in urban environments. The choice of bioretention media is frequently cited as one of the critical design parameters with the ultimate impact on the performance of the system. The goal of this review is to highlight data that challenge the importance of media as being the dominant design parameter and argue that the long-term performance is shaped by the interactions between media and the living components of a bioretention system, especially vegetation. Some of the key interactions are related to the impact of plant roots on media pore structure, which has implications on infiltration, storage capacity, and treatment. Another relevant interaction pertains to evapotranspiration and the associated impacts on the water balance and the water quality performance of bioretention systems. The impacts of vegetation on the media are highlighted and actual, as well as potential, impacts of plant-media interactions on bioretention performance are presented.

Ligustrazine Protects Homocysteine-Induced Apoptosis in Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells by Modulating Mitochondrial Dysfunction.

Ligustrazine is one of the alkaloid compounds isolated from the traditional Chinese herb, which shows protective effects on cardiovascular disorders. High homocysteine (Hcy) level can predict cardiovascular-related events including death. In this study, we used Hcy to stimulate the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and investigated the protective effect of ligustrazine on endothelial dysfunction by assessing the cell apoptosis, oxidative damage, mitochondrial dysfunction, and the potential molecular pathways. Our results clearly showed that ligustrazine increased HUVEC cell viability, decreased the dehydrogenase (LDH) level, and inhibited HUVEC apoptosis, which was associated with the attenuation of attenuated oxidative damage. The mitochondrial-dependent pathway was closely related in the regulation of ligustrazine, reflected by the attenuated mitochondrial membrane potential change and decreased cytochrome c release from the mitochondria to the cytosol. Ligustrazine may protect Hcy-induced apoptosis in HUVECs by attenuating oxidative damage and modulating mitochondrial dysfunction.

Characterization of Calibrated Gelatin Sponge Particles in a Rabbit Renal Embolization Model.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the level of artery occlusion, degradation periods, tissue response and vessel recanalization of calibrated gelatin sponge particles after segmental renal artery embolization. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Superselective embolization of 14 adult rabbits was performed with calibrated gelatin sponge particles (150-350 µm). Two rabbits were killed immediately after the procedure (day 0). One pair of rabbits was killed on each of the following days: 1, 3, 7, 14, 28 and 56. One rabbit from each pair underwent CT angiography before embolization and killing. The pathologic changes of the embolized renal parenchyma and embolic characteristics of calibrated gelatin sponge particles were evaluated histologically and angiographically. RESULTS: Calibrated gelatin sponge particles were distally located in interlobular artery with a dense packing on day 0. The level of occlusion paralleled the size of the particles. Partial degradation of the particles was observed on day 3, and complete degradation was observed on day 14. Vessel recanalization was observed through both CTA and histological analysis starting on day 3. Vascular inflammation responding to gelatin sponge particles was mild and subsided with the degradation of the particles. On day 28 and day 56, attenuation of embolized vessels occurred due to marked intimal proliferation, and vascular occlusion developed. CONCLUSIONS: Gelatin sponge particles of 150-350 µm produced dense and distal embolization, and were resorbed before day 14 with a mild tissue reaction. Vessel recanalization occurred secondary to the resorption of gelatin sponge particles, but permanent vascular occlusion developed due to marked intimal hyperplasia after day 28.

Non-fasting lipids detection and their significance in pregnant women.

BACKGROUND: The majority of pregnant women present an increase in lipids. To investigate the influence of the non-fasting state in the lipid and lipoprotein profile in pregnancy, we have aimed to assess the dynamic change of serum lipid and lipoprotein profile with serum glucose in pregnancy to contrast the differences between fasting and non-fasting state. METHODS: Forty-five pregnant women and 41 controls were included in our study. All serum samples were assayed for TC, TG, HDL-C, LDL-C, ApoB, ApoA-1, Lp(a), sdLDL, and Glu concentrations. The comparison between pregnant women and controls (fasting and 2 h after breakfast), differences of these measurement results at three point-in-time, the associations between the concentrations of serum lipid and some maternal and fetus characteristics was conducted with statistical analysis. RESULTS: Except Glu (p < 0.001), there were no significant differences of all lipids between three point-in-time in pregnant women (p > 0.1). The statistically higher levels were found in fasting TC (p = 0.003), TG (p = 0.019), LDL-C (p = 0.002), ApoB (p = 0.001), ApoA1 (p = 0.013) and sdLDL (p < 0.001) of pregnant women compared with controls. Besides, the statistically significances were also found in 2-h TC (p = 0.001), LDL-C (p = 0.001), ApoB (p < 0.001), Glu (p = 0.013), ApoA-1 (p = 0.009) and sdLDL (p < 0.001) of pregnant women compared with controls. Otherwise, in non-fasting status (2 h after breakfast), pregnancy complication was relevant to TC (p = 0.041), HDL-C (p = 0.014), Glu (p = 0.004). Delivery mode was relevant to TC (p = 0.012), HDL-C (p = 0.013), LDL-C (p = 0.026), ApoA-1 (p = 0.012), and sdLDL (p = 0.044). BMI was relevant to TG (p = 0.027). CONCLUSION: We have suggested the non-fasting lipids detection can be used for estimate lipid metabolism in pregnant women.

Development of heart failure risk prediction models based on a multi-marker approach using random forest algorithms.

BACKGROUND: The early identification of heart failure (HF) risk may favorably affect outcomes, and the combination of multiple biomarkers may provide a more comprehensive and valuable means for improving the risk of stratification. This study was conducted to assess the importance of individual cardiac biomarkers creatine kinase MB isoenzyme (CK-MB), B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), galectin-3 (Gal-3) and soluble suppression of tumorigenicity-2 (sST2) for HF diagnosis, and the predictive performance of the combination of these four biomarkers was analyzed using random forest algorithms. METHODS: A total of 193 participants (80 patients with HF and 113 age- and gender-matched healthy controls) were included from June 2017 to December 2017. The correlation and regression analysis were conducted between cardiac biomarkers and echocardiographic parameters. The accuracy and importance of these predictor variables were assessed using random forest algorithms. RESULTS: Patients with HF exhibited significantly higher levels of CK-MB, BNP, Gal-3, and sST2. BNP exhibited a good independent predictive capacity for HF (AUC 0.956). However, CK-MB, sST2, and Gal-3 exhibited a modest diagnostic performance for HF, with an AUC of 0.709, 0.711, and 0.777, respectively. BNP was the most important variable, with a remarkably higher mean decrease accuracy and Gini. Furthermore, there was a general increase in predictive performance using the multi-marker model, and the sensitivity, specificity was 91.5% and 96.7%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The random forest algorithm provides a robust method to assess the accuracy and importance of predictor variables. The combination of CK-MB, BNP, Gal-3, and sST2 achieves improvement in prediction accuracy for HF.

Phosphorus and nitrogen storage, partitioning, and export in a large gravel bed river.

Nutrient dynamics in a 25 km long treated wastewater effluent impacted reach of a large, gravel-bed river were evaluated in five river compartments: surficial sediment, surface water, hyporheic zone water, and aquatic biomass (including epilithic algae and macrophytes). Nutrient storage within, and export from, the river reach, was quantified to assess the impact of WWTP effluent on nutrient dynamics. More than 98% of N and P storage was found in the surficial river bed sediment, where it is available to support epilithic algal and macrophyte growth. Nutrient export from the river reach by sediment, hyporheic water, and biomass were small compared to water column transport. The N:P ratios for the five different compartments suggested that the water column was severely P limited, whereas sediment, hyporheic water, and aquatic biomass tended towards co-limitation and N limitation. Within the river reach, the majority of P was stored immediately downstream of the WWTP effluent outfall, whereas N was retained at a higher rate relative to P in the remainder of the reach. Correlation analysis of nutrient exchange between different compartments suggested that multiple nutrient compartments should be considered when establishing nutrient loading criteria. Nutrient analysis in multiple compartments in the river can add valuable insight into nutrient dynamics and nutrient limitation.

Circular RNA as a biomarker for cancer: A systematic meta-analysis.

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) may serve as biomarkers for a potentially non-invasive diagnosis of cancer. To understand their diagnostic performance, a systematic meta-analysis of the published literature was conducted to review the diagnostic efficiency of circRNAs in patients with cancer. Eligible studies published up to November 30, 2017, on PubMed and EMBASE, were selected for the meta-analysis. All studies were carefully and independently reviewed by two researchers based on their titles and abstracts, following which full texts were perused for potential eligibility. All statistical analyses were performed by STATA 13.0 statistical software and Meta-DiSc 1.4. A total of 10 eligible studies were included. The pooled diagnostic odds ratio was 7.265. The pooled sensitivity was 0.708 and the pooled specificity was 0.722. The positive likelihood and negative likelihood ratios were 2.483 and 0.372, respectively. The area under the curve was 0.793. circRNA was determined to be a notably effective assistant diagnostic biomarker for cancer.

Response of green roof performance to multiple hydrologic and design variables: a laboratory investigation.

Multiple factors affect green roof performance and their effects might vary at different stages of operation. This paper aimed to link green roof performance to hydrologic variables (antecedent moisture condition (AMC) and rainfall intensity) and design variables (growing medium (GM) type and depth) under multiple dimensions at the early stage of operation using laboratory experiment data. The results showed that the AMC is the most influential factor of hydrologic performance, whereas the GM type appeared to primarily affect the nutrient levels of the outflow. The significant main effects of other variables and interaction effects between two variables point to challenges in green roof design.

Geniposide attenuates epilepsy symptoms in a mouse model through the PI3K/Akt/GSK-3ß signaling pathway.

Previous reports on the pharmacological actions of geniposide have indicated that it has anti-asthmatic, anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects in the liver and gallbladder, and therapeutic effects in neurological, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The results of the current study demonstrate that geniposide attenuates epilepsy in a mouse model through the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt)/glycogen synthase kinase-3ß (GSK-3ß) signaling pathway. A mouse model of epilepsy was induced by maximal electric shock (50 mA, 50 Hz, 1 sec). Epilepsy mice were intragastrically administered with 0, 5, 10 or 20 mg/kg geniposide. Geniposide significantly reduced the incidence and significantly increased the latency of clonic seizures in epileptic mice compared with non-treated epileptic mice (both P<0.01). Geniposide treatment significantly inhibited cyclooxygenase-2 mRNA expression in epilepsy mice (P<0.01). Furthermore, geniposide significantly suppressed the protein expression of activator protein 1, increased the activation of Akt and increased the protein expression of GSK-3ß and PI3K in epilepsy mice (all P<0.01). These results suggest that geniposide attenuates epilepsy in mice through the PI3K/Akt/GSK-3ß signaling pathway.

Hardy's inequalities for the twisted convolution with Laguerre functions.

In this article, two types of Hardy's inequalities for the twisted convolution with Laguerre functions are studied. The proofs are mainly based on an estimate for the Heisenberg left-invariant vectors of the special Hermite functions deduced by the Heisenberg group approach.