Controllable Fabrication of Hydrophilic Surface Micro/Nanostructures of CFRP by Femtosecond Laser.

Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP), a highly engineered lightweight material with superior properties, is widely used in industrial fields, such as aerospace, automobile, and railway transportation, as well as medical implants and supercapacitor. This work presents an effective surface treatment method for the controllable fabrication of hydrophilic surface micro/nanostructures of CFRP through femtosecond laser processing. Selective removal of the epoxy resin and leaving the carbon fibers exposed are achieved when CFRP is weakly ablated by a femtosecond laser. The diameters and structures of the carbon fibers can be controlled by adjusting the laser processing parameters. Three-dimensional surface micro/nanostructures are processed when CFRP is strongly ablated by a femtosecond laser. Meanwhile, the transformation of the sp2 orbitals to sp3 orbitals of graphitic carbons of carbon fibers is induced by a femtosecond laser. Moreover, the investigation of surface roughness and wettability of femtosecond laser-processed CFRP indicates increased roughness and excellent hydrophilicity (a contact angle of 28.1°). This work reveals the effect of femtosecond laser processing on the regulation of the physicochemical properties of CFRP, which can be applicable to surface treatment and performance control of other fiber-resin composites. The excellent hydrophilicity will be conducive to the combination of CFRP with other materials or to reducing the friction resistance of CFRP used in medical implants.

Diet and lifestyle behaviours simultaneously act on frailty: it is time to move the threshold of frailty prevention and control forward.

BACKGROUND: To analyse the association among the simultaneous effects of dietary intake, daily life behavioural factors, and frailty outcomes in older Chinese women, we predicted the probability of maintaining physical robustness under a combination of different variables. METHODS: The Fried frailty criterion was used to determine the three groups of "frailty", "pre-frailty", and "robust", and a national epidemiological survey was performed. The three-classification decision tree model was fitted, and the comprehensive performance of the model was evaluated to predict the probability of occurrence of different outcomes. RESULTS: Among the 1,044 participants, 15.9% were frailty and 50.29% were pre-frailty; the overall prevalence first increased and then decreased with age, reaching a peak at 70-74 years of age. Through univariate analysis, filtering, and embedded screening, eight significant variables were identified: staple food, spices, exercise (frequency, intensity, and time), work frequency, self-feeling, and family emotions. In the three-classification decision tree, the values of each evaluation index of Model 3 were relatively average; the accuracy, recall, specificity, precision, and F1 score range were between 75% and 84%, and the AUC was also greater than 0.800, indicating excellent performance and the best interpretability of the results. Model 3 takes exercise time as the root node and contains 6 variables and 10 types, suggesting the impact of the comprehensive effect of these variables on robust and non-robust populations (the predicted probability range is 6.67-93.33%). CONCLUSION: The combined effect of these factors (no exercise or less than 0.5 h of exercise per day, occasional exercise, exercise at low intensity, feeling more tired at work, and eating too many staple foods (> 450 g per day) are more detrimental to maintaining robustness.

Multi-omics association study of hexadecane degradation in haloarchaeal strain Halogranum rubrum RO2-11.

Haloarchaea with the capacity to degrade alkanes is promising to deal with petroleum pollution in hypersaline environments. However, only a limited number of haloarchaeal species are investigated, and their pathway and mechanism for alkane degradation remain unclear. In this study, Halogranum rubrum RO2-11, a haloarchaeal strain, verified the ability to degrade kerosene and hexadecane in 184 g/L NaCl, with 53% and 52% degradation rates after 9 and 4 days, respectively. Genome sequencing and gene annotation indicated that strain RO2-11 possesses a complete potential alkane-degrading pathway, of which alkane hydroxylases may include CYP450, AlmA, and LadA. Transcriptome and metabolome analyses revealed that the upregulation of related genes in TCA cycle, lysine biosynthesis, and acetylation may help improve hexadecane degradation. Additionally, an alternative degrading pathway of hexadecane based on dual-terminal ß-oxidation may occur in strain RO2-11. It is likely to be the first report of alkane degradation by the genus Halogranum, which may be helpful for applications of oil-pollution bioremediation under high-salt conditions.

Inflection Point Age in the Middle and Older Women - Jiangxi Province, China, 2020-2022.

What is already known about this topic?: Previous studies have predominantly examined the micro-level aspects of women aging inflection points, while macro-level research using big data on the inflection points of aging among middle-aged and elderly women in China is currently limited. What is added by this report?: This study determined the inflection ages for physiological, psychological, social, and total dimensions in middle-aged, young elderly, and elderly women [(48.0-53.2) vs. (66.3-70.0) vs. (78.4-81.2) years old]. What are the implications for public health practice?: This study is important for gaining a deeper understanding of aging, identifying patterns of aging, and implementing targeted interventions to promote the overall health of Chinese women.

Big data on the prevalence of injury deaths among 187 488 elderly Chinese in the past 20 years (2000-2020): a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: This study systematically reviewed injury death and causes in the elderly population in China from 2000 to 2020, to prevent or reduce the occurrence of injuries and death. METHODS: The CNKI, VIP, Wan Fang, MEDLINE, Embase, SinoMed, and Web of Science databases were searched to collect epidemiological characteristics of injury death among elderly over 60 years old in China from January 2000 to December 2020. Random effects meta-analysis was performed to pool injury mortality rate and identify publication bias, with study quality assessed using the AHRQ risk of bias tool. RESULTS: (1) A total of 41 studies with 187 488 subjects were included, covering 125 million elderly. The pooled injury mortality rate was 135.58/105 [95%CI: (113.36 to 162.14)/105], ranking second in the total death cause of the elderly. (2)Subgroup analysis showed that male injury death (146.00/105) was significantly higher than that of females (127.90/105), and overall injury mortality increased exponentially with age (R2 = 0.957), especially in those over 80 years old; the spatial distribution shows that the injury death rate in the central region is higher than that in the east and west and that in the countryside is higher than that in the city; the distribution of death time shows that after entering an aging society (2000-2020) is significantly higher than before (1990-2000). (3) There are more than 12 types of injury death, and the top three are falling, traffic accidents, and suicide. CONCLUSIONS: China's elderly injury death rate is at a high level in the world, with more males than females, especially after the age of 80. There are regional differences. The main types of injury death are falling, traffic, and suicide. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, for accidental injuries and death, a rectification list for aging and barrier-free environments was issued. PROSPERO REGISTRATION: The systematic review was registered in PROSPERO under protocol number CRD42022359992.

Intrathyroidal Thymic Carcinoma: A Retrospective Case Series Study.

OBJECTIVE: Intrathyroidal thymic carcinoma (ITC) is a rare low-grade malignant thyroid tumor. There is neither sufficient understanding of this tumor nor its clinical treatment. This study is to explore the clinicopathological features, treatment, and prognosis of ITC and thereby provide a reference for the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. METHODS: The clinical, pathological, therapeutic, and prognostic data of 13 patients with ITC were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: The case series comprised 7 males and 6 females, with an average age of 51.9 ± 10.1 years. After surgical resection, all patients received post-operative neck radiotherapy at dosages of 60-66 Gy. Five patients with level VI lymph node metastasis additionally received 6 courses of cisplatin chemotherapy. All patients were followed-up for 21-132 months (median = 66 months), and all of them survived without recurrence or metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: The diagnosis of ITC depends mainly on pathological and immunohistochemical results, particularly CD5 positive staining. Surgical resection is the preferred primary treatment modality which can be supplemented with radiotherapy and chemotherapy to reduce the risk of recurrence and metastasis.

Predictors of Readmission After Pulmonary Resection in Patients With Lung Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Objective: Postoperative readmissions are considered an indicator of healthcare quality. The purpose of this study was to assess the factors associated with readmission following pulmonary resection for lung cancer. Methods: A comprehensive search was performed in PubMed, Web of science, the Cochrane Library, and databases of CNKI and Wanfang. We collected the factors associated with readmission following pulmonary resection from the included studies, and data analysis was conducted with STATA SE12.0 software. Results: A total of 11 studies (386 012 participants) were included. The meta-analysis results showed that age (standardized mean difference [SMD] = 0.093), male sex (odds ratio [OR] = 1.260), Charlson score (SMD = 1.408), forced expiratory volume in 1 second predicted (SMD = -0.203), congestive heart failure (OR = 1.708), peripheral vascular disease (OR = 1.436), and histology (OR = 0.804) were associated with readmission (P < .05), while hypertension was not. Patients with postoperative empyema, pneumonia, air leak, and arrhythmia (all P < .05) had higher odds of hospital readmission. Conclusion: The predictive factors for readmission can help in establishing individualized discharge and follow-up plans and programs for reducing hospital readmissions after pulmonary resection in patients with lung cancer.

[Characteristics of distribution and changes of telomere length in human].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between telomere length changes and age, and to provide data and reference for further study of geriatric medical problems.
 Methods: The healthy people over 20 years old were chosen as subject from several hospitals by random sampling method, and their peripheral blood samples were collected. The relative length of telomere was detected by quantitative real-time PCR, and the relationship between age and telomere length was analyzed by statistical software.
 Results: A total of 1 022 samples were obtained. There were significant differences in the relative telomere length among different age groups (F=21.492, P<0.001). Telomere length and age showed negative correlation (r=-0.325, P<0.001), the regression equation was y=-0.008x+1.772 (x for age, y for the average telomere length, P<0.001).
 Conclusion: The telomere length for peripheral blood leukocytes in healthy people varies between different age groups, suggesting that telomere length gradually decreases with age.

[Evaluation of the aging status and distribution characteristics for male population by three-dimensional human aging scale].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the ageing status for male population aged or over 20 years old in urban communities, clarifying their distribution characteristics and rules, and to provide reference for aging research.
 Methods: A total of 1 120 men aged or over 20 years old in Nanchang were obtained by stratified sampling, and the aging scale was measured in 9 groups. The distribution characteristics of aging scores were analyzed by normality test, variance analysis, and linear correlation.
 Results: The total score of aging and the scores of physiological, psychological, and physiological dimensions were 54.01±9.24, 32.33±7.54, 14.66±1.64, and 7.02±1.16, respectively. The scores were positively correlated with age. The total score curve of aging was significantly increased in the 25-<30 and 30-<40, 65-<70 and 70-<75 years old groups. The physiological dimension curve was similar to the total score curve. The psychological dimension curve was more pronounced at 55-<60 and 60-<65 years old groups. The social dimension curve raised slowly and smoothly at all ages.
 Conclusion: The total score and the scores for all dimensions of male physiological-psycho-sociological increase with age; and changes near the age group of 55-<60 and 60-<65 are obvious, providing reference for the understanding of male aging.

[Application of the psychological aging scale for healthy people: A preliminary study based on empirical research].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the distribution of psychological aging in healthy population and its relationship with telomere length in peripheral blood leukocyte, and to provide reference for aging evaluation.
 Methods: Stratified random samples were obtained according to age and they were divided into 9 age groups. The age-related psychological information were collected from healthy people by using the self-made scale. Situation of psychological aging, correlation between age and telomere length and score of this scale were analyzed by statistical software.
 Results: A total of 2 100 questionnaires were distributed, and 2 060 of them were valid and has been recovered, with an efficiency of 98.10%. The ratio of male to female was 0.95:1; psychological aging score was in the range of 8.62-23.14; cognitive function score was in the range of 2.25-10.77; emotion score was in the range of 1.45-6.73; personality score was in the range of 0.96-4.22; motivation score was in the range of 1.50-7.18. The correlation coefficient of psychological aging scores with age was 0.721 (P<0.001). The average relative telomere length was 1.06±0.26, and relative telomere length in different age groups were significantly different (F=35.803, P<0.001). Telomere length was negatively correlated with age (r=-0.964, P<0.001) and psychological aging scores (r=-0.915, P=0.004).
 Conclusion: The empirical study of physiological aging scale in healthy population shows that the scores of physical aging are increased with age and that the telomere length is negatively correlated with aging scores, suggesting that the scale can provide reference for the comprehensive evaluation of aging.

[Based on empirical research: a preliminary study on application of the social aging scale for healthy people].

OBJECTIVE: To build a social aging scale for healthy people, and get the accuracy and feasibility of the scale to judge the aging of healthy people on the basis of the empirical research.
 Methods: Stratified random sampling was conducted according to the nine different age groups, and the age-related social function information was collected for healthy people by using the scale, which was made in our own plant; the distribution of the score, the correlations between the score and age or telomere length were analyzed by statistical software.
 Results: A total of 2 297 subjects were collected for the analysis. The ratio of male to female was 0.8:1. Social function of aging score was in the range of 3.00-12.90; aging score of personal ability was in the range of 1.00-4.45; aging score of social participation was in the range of 1.00-4.52; and aging score of organizational communication was in the range of 1.00-5.00. The correlation coefficient of aging scores with age was 0.696 (P<0.001). The result of telomere length showed that the relative telomere length was 1.056±0.261. The telomere length in different groups were significantly different (F=35.803, P<0.001). The telomere length was negatively correlated with aging (r=-0.964, P<0.001) and social function of aging (r=-0.857, P<0.001), respectively.
 Conclusion: The scores of age-related social function, personal ability, social participation, and organizational communication are increased with age. The telomere length is negatively correlated to aging score. The scale is applicable to measure social function of aging, which can provide reference for evaluation of the comprehensive of aging.

Association of ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes hospital admission with extreme temperature in Nanchang, China-A case-crossover study.

Despite consistent evidence of a higher short-term risk of stroke mortality associated with ambient temperature, there are no findings on the association between extreme temperature and stroke. A total of 16,264 stroke hospital admissions were observed in three hospitals of Nanchang between 2008 and 2015. The case-crossover design was utilized for our study. Conditional logistic regression models were used to calculate the odds ratios. Extreme high temperature exposure during the 3days before the stroke was associated with both ischemic (OR=1.18; 95% CI: 1.07-1.36) and hemorrhagic stroke admissions (OR=1.34; 95% CI: 1.26-1.42) as compared to 3-day control periods (1-3days last week before the onset of stroke). Extreme low temperature was associated with hemorrhagic stroke admission (OR=1.42; 95% CI: 1.28-1.58) but not ischemic stroke (OR=1.06; 95% CI: 0.93-1.13). This study suggests that extreme high temperature might be a risk factor for both hemorrhagic and ischemic strokes, and that extreme low temperature might be a risk factor of hemorrhagic stroke. Further studies are necessary in order to clarify this relationship and provide evidence for stroke prevention.

[Construction of a psychological aging scale for healthy people].

OBJECTIVE: To construct a psychological aging scale, and to provide a tool and indexes for scientific evaluation on aging.
 Methods: The age-related psychological items were collected through literature screening and expert interview. The importance, feasibilityand the degree of authority for the psychological index system were graded by two rounds of Delphi method. Using analytic hierarchy process, the weight of dimensions and items were determined. The analysis for internal consistency reliability, correlation and exploratory factor was performed to evaluate the reliability and validity of the scales.
 Results: By two rounds of Delphi method, 17 experts offered the results as follows: the coefficient of expert authorities was 0.88±0.06, the coordination coefficients for the importance and feasibility in second round were 0.456 (P<0.01) and 0.666 (P<0.01), respectively. The consistency was good. The psychological aging scale for healthy people included 4 dimensions as follows: cognitive function, emotion, personality and motivation. The weight coefficients for the 4 dimensions were 0.338, 0.250, 0.166 and 0.258, respectively. The Cronbach's α coefficient for the scale was 0.822, the reliability was 0.817, the content validity index (CVI) was 0.847, and the cumulative contribution rate for the 5 factors was51.42%.
 Conclusion: The psychological aging scale is satisfied, which can provide reference for the evaluation for aging. The indicators were representative and well-recognized.

[Construction of a physiological aging scale for healthy people based on a modified Delphi method].

OBJECTIVE: To build a physiological aging scale for healthy people.
 METHODS: We collected age-related physiologic items through literature screening and expert interview. Two rounds of Delphi were implemented. The importance, feasibility and the degree of authority for the physiological index system were graded. Using analytic hierarchy process, we determined the weight of dimensions and items.
 RESULTS: Using Delphy mothod, 17 physiological and other professional experts offered the results as follow: coefficient of expert authorities Cr was 0.86±0.03, coordination coefficients for the first and second round were 0.264(χ2=229.691, P<0.001) and 0.293(χ2=228.474，P<0.001), respectively. The consistency was good. The aging scale for healthy people included 3 dimensions, namely physical form, feeling movement and functional status. Each dimension had 8 items. The weight coefficients for the 3 dimensions were 0.54, 0.16, and 0.30, respectively. The Cronbach's α coefficient of the scale was 0.893, the reliability was 0.796, and the variance of the common factor was 58.17%.
 CONCLUSION: The improved Delphi method or physiological aging scale is satisfied, which can provide reference for the evaluation of aging.

[Analysis of 33 children with deep neck infection].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the effective treatment of deep neck infection in children. METHODS: Thirty-three cases of deep neck infection treated from September 2005 to May 2015 were retrospectively reviewed. To observe the effect of antibiotics and surgical drainage. RESULTS: All cases were cured, including one case who was complicated with carotid artery rupture and was timely cured by vascular interventional therapy, and the cure rate was 100%. CONCLUSION: Combined application of broad-spectrum antibiotics and effective surgical drainage are key to treat deep neck infection in children. The emergence of repeated small amount of bleeding in the nose and throat in children is an indicator for big neck vessel rupture and interventional vascular therapy may be considered.

[The clinical analysis of thyriod carcinoma showing thymus-like differentiation].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of carcinoma showing thymus-like differentiation (CASTLE) of thyroid, and to improve the understanding of CASTLE. METHOD: In 6 patients with CASTLE, we performed region VI lymph node dissection, the lesion resection of thyroid lobe and isthmus. After the operation, except one case of 68 years old patient, the rest patients were treated with radiotherapy 60 Gy in anterior cervical region after third week of operation and 5 courses of chemotherapy with cisplatin, each interval of 2 weeks. Insist on the oral Euthyrox. RESULT: All patients were alive without recurrence and metastasis. CONCLUSION: The diagnosis of CASTLE depends on the histology and immunohistochemistry. Operation was the main treatment. CASTLE is a rare type of thyroid carcinoma with slow progress and good prognosis.

Diabetes mellitus and the occurrence of colorectal cancer: an updated meta-analysis of cohort studies.

BACKGROUND: Recently, it has been found that diabetes patients have a higher incidence of colorectal cancer than the general population, but epidemiological studies examining a potential relationship between the two have produced inconsistent conclusions. Thus, we set out to perform a meta-analysis of cohort studies to evaluate the association between diabetes and colorectal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using "diabetes," "colorectal cancer," and associated key words, we performed a systematic review of published cohort studies in multiple databases, including MEDLINE, EMBASE, ISI Web of Knowledge databases, OVID, CNKI, CBMD ISC, WANFANG, and CQVIP. We then applied stringent inclusion and exclusion criteria to identify which studies to include in our analysis. STATA version 12.0 software (StataCorp., College Station, TX) was used to conduct statistical analysis, including consolidated statistics calculations, tests for heterogeneity, and publication bias evaluations. RESULTS: We obtained a total of 532 potential articles. In accordance with our inclusion and exclusion criteria, we selected 29 articles for the meta-analysis. The analysis of extracted information indicated that diabetes is a risk factor for the development of colorectal cancer (relative risk 1.22, 95% confidence interval 1.19-1.26). Subgroup analyses by control populations, regions, gender, follow-up time, and colorectal cancer site also support this finding. CONCLUSIONS: The risk of individuals with diabetes to develop colorectal cancer is 1.22 times higher than that of individuals without diabetes. The positive association remains consistent for both men and women and for studies carried out in North America, Europe, and Asia, as well as for different follow-up times.

HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins) and bone mineral density: a meta-analysis.

CONTEXT: The association between 3-hydroxy-3methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase inhibitors (statins) and bone mineral density (BMD) is controversial because of conflicting findings from previous studies. OBJECTIVE AND DESIGN: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effect of statins on BMD reported in randomized and non-randomized controlled trials. We searched PubMed and Embase, using text, medical subject headings (MeSH) and keywords "bone mineral density" and "statins" or "HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors". Our last PubMed and Embase queries were updated to August 2012. Data on participants, interventions, and outcomes from each study were abstracted independently by two authors. RESULTS: Five case-control studies, six cohort studies and four randomized controlled trials (RCTs) met the inclusion criteria. Included studies involved 34,877 subjects (3824 in the intervention group and 31,053 in the control group) in 12 different countries with ages ranging from 44 to 66 years. Statins significantly increased BMD at lumbar spine [standardized mean difference (SMD) 0.15, 95% CI 0.09-0.22], total hip (SMD 0.22, 95% CI 0.17-0.27) and femoral neck (SMD 0.19, 95% CI 0.09-0.29). We carried out subgroup analyses on selected populations of the cohorts. Statistically significant increases were also observed in the lumbar spine (SMD 0.12, 95% CI 0.04-0.21), total hip (SMD 0.23, 95% CI 0.17-0.28) and femoral neck BMD (SMD 0.22, 95% CI 0.08-0.36). CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that statins may help improve and maintain BMD at the lumbar spine, hip and femoral neck, especially in Caucasians and Asians. It also provides justification for prospective RCTs to evaluate the possible role of statins in BMD in different ethnic populations, such as Latin American and Africans.

Back propagation artificial neural network for community Alzheimer's disease screening in China.

Alzheimer's disease patients diagnosed with the Chinese Classification of Mental Disorders diagnostic criteria were selected from the community through on-site sampling. Levels of macro and trace elements were measured in blood samples using an atomic absorption method, and neurotransmitters were measured using a radioimmunoassay method. SPSS 13.0 was used to establish a database, and a back propagation artificial neural network for Alzheimer's disease prediction was simulated using Clementine 12.0 software. With scores of activities of daily living, creatinine, 5-hydroxytryptamine, age, dopamine and aluminum as input variables, the results revealed that the area under the curve in our back propagation artificial neural network was 0.929 (95% confidence interval: 0.868-0.968), sensitivity was 90.00%, specificity was 95.00%, and accuracy was 92.50%. The findings indicated that the results of back propagation artificial neural network established based on the above six variables were satisfactory for screening and diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease in patients selected from the community.