[Ecological environment quality of the Shanxi section of the Yellow River Basin under different development scenarios]. / ä¸åŒå‘å±•æƒ æ™¯ä¸‹é»„æ²³æµåŸŸå±±è¥¿æ®µç”Ÿæ€çŽ¯å¢ƒè´¨é‡.

Shanxi Province holds an important strategic position in the overall ecological pattern of the Yellow River Basin. To investigate the changes of the ecological environment in the Shanxi section of the Yellow River Basin from 2000 to 2020, we selected MODIS remote sensing image data to determine the remote sensing ecological index (RSEI) based on the principal component analysis of greenness, humidity, dryness, and heat. Then, we analyzed the spatial and temporal variations of ecological quality in this region to explore the influencing factors. We further used the CA-Markov model to simulate and predict the ecological environment under different development scenarios in the Shanxi section of the Yellow River Basin in 2030. The results showed that RSEI had good applicability in the Shanxi section of the Yellow River Basin which could be used to monitor and evaluate the spatiotemporal variations in its ecological environment. From 2000 to 2020, the Shanxi section of the Yellow River Basin was dominated by low quality habitat areas, in which the ecological environment quality continued to improve from 2000 to 2010 and decreased from 2010 to 2020. The high quality habitat areas mainly located on the mountainous areas with superior natural conditions and rich biodiversity, while the low ecological quality areas were mainly in the Taiyuan Basin and the northern part of the study area, where the mining industry developed well. Climate factors were negatively correlated with ecological environment quality in the northern and central parts of the study area, and positively correlated with that in the mountainous area. Under all three development scenarios, the area of cultivated land, forest, water and construction land increased in 2030 compared to that in 2020. Compared to the natural development scenario and the cultivated land protection scenario, the ecological constraint scenario with RSEI as the limiting factor had the highest area of new forest and the lowest expansion rate of cultivated land and construction land. The results would provide a reference for land space planning and ecological environment protection in the Shanxi section of the Yellow River Basin.

A Novel Method of Synthesizing Polymeric Aluminum Ferric Sulfate Flocculant and Preparing Red Mud-Based Ceramsite.

A synthetic flocculant of aluminum (Al) and iron (Fe) extracted from red mud (RM) has been widely used in sewage treatment, while the remaining RM residue has been ignored. This study aimed to synthesize polymeric aluminum ferric sulfate (PAFS) flocculant from RM by acid leaching and then use the acidified RM residue to produce an acid RM-based ceramsite (ARMC) by mixing bentonite, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, and starch. Our results showed that sintering, reaction temperature, H2SO4 concentration, reaction time, and liquid-to-solid ratio had an obvious effect on the leaching of Al and Fe in RM, which was a necessary prerequisite for the efficient PAFS flocculants. At a PAFS dosage of 60 mg/L, turbidity and phosphate removal rates were 95.21 ± 0.64% and 89.17 ± 0.52%, respectively. When the pH value was 8.0, the turbidity and phosphate removal efficiency were 99.22 ± 0.66% and 95.98 ± 1.63%, respectively. Considering the adsorption capacity and mechanical properties, the best conditions for ARMC production included using 60% ARM and ceramsite calcination at 600 °C, with the BET surface area 56.16 m2/g and a pore volume of 0.167 cm3/g. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that 400 °C was a reasonable preheating temperature to enhance the ARMC mechanical strength, as this temperature allows the removal of surface-adsorbed and constituent water. Under a scanning electron microscope, the ARMC appeared rough before adsorption, while relatively uniform pores occupied it after adsorption. Our conclusion will help to improve the zero-waste strategy of RM and speed up the industrial production of RM in flocculants as well as utilizing ARMC as a new type of adsorbent for phosphorus adsorption in sewage treatment.

[Blind area and layout optimization of parks based on the spatial supply-demand evaluation in Taiyuan City, China]. / åŸºäºŽä¾›éœ€å‡è¡¡çš„å¤ªåŽŸå¸‚å ¬å›­æœåŠ¡ç›²åŒºåŠä¼˜åŒ–å¸ƒå±€.

It is of great practical significance to identify service blind area, scientifically select park construction areas, and clarify the priority of parks' construction based on the co-ordination of supply-demand evaluation. With the urban parks within the Taiyuan Ring Expressway as the research subjects, we estimated the accessibility range and the service pressure of each park by using the application programming interface of Gaode map route planning and point of interest data to characterize their supply and demand levels. We identified the service blind areas of parks by overlay analysis, and used the location-allocation (LA) model to purposefully supply park green space. Results showed that the accessibility coverage rates of the parks by walking and bicycling within 15 minutes were 35.6% and 71.7%, respectively, indicating insufficient supply capacity of parks. The areas with large potential demand for park green space in Taiyuan were mainly concentrated in the business district of Qinxian-Changfeng Street and the Shuangta business district within Dongzhong ring road, which existed the obviously invisible blind areas. Finally, we proposed new park green space site selection proposal based on LA model. Optimization results indicated that the coverage rates of walking and bicycling within 15 minutes increased to 46.7% and 81.0%, respectively, and that the service pressure of parks was relieved. We combined the leisure demands of urban residents and the distribution of urban parks by utilizing network big data, which could promote the scientific nature and accuracy of the optimizing site selection and provide scientific method and theory basis for urban park construction.

[Clinical application and effectiveness of patellar tunnel locator in medial patellofemoral ligament reconstruction surgery].

Objective: To evaluate the operability and effectiveness of a self-developed patellar bone canal locator (hereinafter referred to as "locator") in the reconstruction of the medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL). Methods: A total of 38 patients with recurrent patellar dislocation who met the selection criteria admitted between January 2022 and December 2022 were randomly divided into study group (the patellar canal was established with a locator during MPFL reconstruction) and control group (no locator was used in MPFL reconstruction), with 19 cases in each group. There was no significant difference in baseline data between the two groups ( P>0.05), such as gender, age, body mass index, disease duration, patella Wiberg classification, constituent ratio of cartilage injury, Caton index, tibia tubercle-trochlear groove, and preoperative Lysholm score, Kujal score, Tegner score, visual analogue scale (VAS) score, and so on. The Lysholm score, Kujal score, Tegner score, and VAS score were used to evaluate knee joint function before operation and at 3 days,1 month, 3 months, and 6 months after operation. The ideal prepatellar cortical thickness and canal length were measured before operation, and the actual prepatellar cortical thickness and canal length after operation were also measured, and D1 (the distance between the ideal entrance and the actual entrance), D2 (the ideal canal length minus the actual canal length), D3 (the ideal prepatellar cortical thickness minus the actual prepatellar cortical thickness) were calculated. Results: Patients in both groups were followed up 6-8 months (mean, 6.7 months). The incision length and intraoperative blood loss in the study group were smaller than those in the control group, but the operation time was longer than that in the control group, the differences were significant ( P<0.05). There was no complication such as incision infection, effusion, and delayed healing in both groups, and no further dislocation occurred during follow-up. One patient in the study group had persistent pain in the anserine area after operation, and the symptoms were relieved after physiotherapy. The VAS score of the two groups increased significantly at 3 days after operation, and gradually decreased with the extension of time; the change trends of Lysholm score, Kujal score, and Tegner score were opposite to VAS score. Except that the Lysholm score and Kujal score of the study group were higher than those of the control group at 3 days after operation, and the VAS score of the study group was lower than that of the control group at 3 days and 1 month after operation, the differences were significant ( P<0.05), there was no significant difference in the scores between the two groups at other time points ( P>0.05). Patellar bone canal evaluation showed that there was no significant difference in preoperative simulated ideal canal length, prepatellar cortical thickness, and postoperative actual canal length between the two groups ( P>0.05). The postoperative actual prepatellar cortical thickness of the study group was significantly smaller than that of the control group ( P<0.05). D1 and D3 in the study group were significantly higher than those in control group ( P<0.05), but there was no significant difference in D2 between the two groups ( P>0.05). Conclusion: The locator can improve the accuracy of MPFL reconstruction surgery, reduce the possibility of intraoperative damage to the articular surface of patella and postoperative patellar fractures.

The Concentrations, Sources, Ecological, and Human Health Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Roadside Soils of Six Cities in Shanxi Province, China.

Roadside soils are regarded as a reservoir for heavy metal pollution, which potentially leads to ecosystem deterioration as well as serious hazard to human health. A comprehensive investigation was conducted for the levels, relationship with soil properties, and potential sources of heavy metals (Hg, Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, and Cr) in roadside soils in six cities (Changzhi, Jincheng, Yuncheng, Linfen, Xinzhou, Datong) of Shanxi Province; and the corresponding ecological risk and human health risk associated with the concentrations of heavy metals were addressed. Heavy metal concentrations of 112 roadside soil samples in the surveyed cities were, in decreasing order, Zn, Cu, Cr, Pb, Cd, and Hg, which were higher than corresponding background values. The highest concentrations were in Changzhi. The results of Pearson correlation analysis demonstrated that positive correlations in varying degrees existed between soil properties such as electrical conductivity, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and total organic carbon with specific heavy metals and that negative correlations were observed for clay and electrical conductivity. Anthropogenic sources related to traffic emissions and industrialization were the main sources of heavy metals in roadside soils according to principal component analysis. The ecological risk assessments were achieved by pollution index and potential risk index, indicating that contamination with Hg was the most serious, which posed the highest risk to the ecosystems in the surveyed cities; and the ecological risk in Changzhi ranked at the top compared with other cities. For the human health risk assessment, the results demonstrated that the noncarcinogenic and carcinogenic risks were in the acceptable range in the surveyed cities. However, there was a higher health risk from heavy metal exposure for children than adults, and the main exposure pathway was soil ingestion. In addition, Changzhi was the city with the highest noncarcinogenic and carcinogenic risks, and the main human health risks were posed by Cr contamination in roadside soil, which was different from the results of ecological risks. Both results of ecological and health risk assessment demonstrated that the higher risk exhibited in southern and southeastern cities than northern cities in Shanxi Province. Environ Toxicol Chem 2023;42:1485-1500. © 2023 SETAC.

[Epidemiological and clinical characteristics analysis of 681 cases of thoracolumbar osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures].

Objective: To investigate the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of patients with thoracolumbar osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture (OVCF) treated by percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP). Methods: The clinical and imaging data of 681 patients with thoracolumbar OVCF treated with PVP between January 2017 and December 2021 were collected. The epidemiological and clinical characteristics of the patients with thoracolumbar OVCF in single center were summarized from the aspects of demographic distribution (mainly including gender, age), fracture characteristic analysis [including pathological segments, bone mineral density, and body mass index (BMI)], and operation related results (including the distribution of unilateral and bilateral puncture and bone cement injection, postoperative effectiveness analysis and refracture). Results: Of the 681 patients, 134 (19.68%) were male and 547 (80.32%) were female, with a male-to-female ratio of 1∶4.08. The age ranged from 53 to 105 years, with an average of 75.3 years. The age group of 60-90 years old had the largest number of patients (91.04%); the high incidence age group of men was 70-90 years old (13.95%), and that of women was 60-80 years old (72.98%). A total of 836 vertebrae were involved, and the morbidity of thoracolumbar vertebrae (T 11-L 1) was the highest (56.34%, 471/836). The main type of fracture was compression fracture (92.58%, 774/836) and Kümmell disease (7.42%, 62/836). There were 489 cases (71.81%) of osteoporosis, including 66 males and 423 females, with a male-to-female ratio of 1∶6.42. There was significant difference in distribution of bone mineral density between male and female groups ( Z=-5.810, P<0.001). BMI showed 206 cases (30.25%) of underweight, 347 (50.95%) cases of normal, 58 cases (8.52%) of overweight, 42 cases (6.17%) of obese, and 28 cases (4.11%) of extremely obese. The difference in BMI distribution between male and female groups was significant ( Z=-2.220, P=0.026). Of 836 vertebral bodies, 472 (56.46%) were punctured unilaterally and 364 (43.54%) bilaterally. Most of the vertebral bodies (49.88%, 417/836) were injected with 5.0-6.9 mL bone cement, and most of them were distributed in thoracolumbar and lumbar vertebral bodies (T 11-L 3). The visual analogue scale (VAS) score and Oswestry disability index (ODI) of patients with unilateral puncture and bilateral puncture significantly improved at 6 months after operation ( P<0.001), and also the difference was significant between the two groups in the difference of pre- and post-operation ( P<0.001). There were 628 cases (92.22%) with the first occurrence of OVCF, and 53 cases (7.78%) with two or more times of OVCF, all of which were female patients, and 26 cases (49.06%) occurred in the adjacent segment of the previous PVP operation. Conclusion: Female were more than male in OVCF patients. Thoracolumbar vertebral body has the highest morbidity. Patients with low BMI are more likely to have osteoporosis, and patients with high BMI have a higher risk of compression fracture. The amount of bone cement injected through bilateral puncture was greater than that through unilateral puncture.

Selective retention of particulate matter by nine plant species in central Shanxi Province, China.

Plant leaves can accumulate particulate matter (PM) from the air, thus mitigating air pollution. Nine plant species from the central part of Shanxi Province, China, were investigated to characterize differences in their PM retention capacity and the grain sizes of the collected PM. Styphnolobium japonicum, Syringa oblata, and Cerasus serrulata demonstrated strong retention capacity for PM particles of diverse size fractions. Philadelphus incanus, Viburnum opulus, and Yulania biondii had relatively weak retention capacity for overall and fine PM. Generally, species with smaller leaves and roughness surfaces, waxy leaves, or leaves with hair had strong PM retention capacity. Leaves with suitable groove widths better retained fine PM. Foliar dust observed on leaves presented multimodal distribution curves, including bimodal, trimodal, and four-peak distributions, which differed from the trimodal distribution of natural dustfall. The different PM retention capacities of the nine investigated species and the differing grain sizes between foliar dust and atmospheric dustfall indicated that plant leaves could selectively retain PM. The results of this study provide a scientific basis for the use of the plant to mitigate particulate air pollution.

Permanently Avoiding Steam on Camera for Arthroscopy by a Simple Device.

Steam on the camera may happen in any arthroscopic procedure, especially in shoulder arthroscopy. Although multiple techniques and devices have been applied to avoid steam, it still cannot be prevented completely. We designed a simple device to terminate this problem by protecting against the ingress of water.

MiR-29a and MiR-140 Protect Chondrocytes against the Anti-Proliferation and Cell Matrix Signaling Changes by IL-1ß.

As a degenerative joint disease, osteoarthritis (OA) constitutes a major cause of disability that seriously affects the quality of life of a large population of people worldwide. However, effective treatment that can successfully reverse OA progression is lacking until now. The present study aimed to determine whether two small non-coding RNAs miR-29a and miR-140, which are significantly down-regulated in OA, can be applied together as potential therapeutic targets for OA treatment. MiRNA synergy score was used to screen the miRNA pairs that potentially synergistically regulate OA. An in vitro model of OA was established by treating murine chondrocytes with IL-1ß. Transfection of miR-29a and miR-140 via plasmids was investigated on chondrocyte proliferation and expression of nine genes such as ADAMTS4, ADAMTS5, ACAN, COL2A1, COL10A1, MMP1, MMP3, MMP13 and TIMP metal-lopeptidase inhibitor 1 (TIMP1). Western blotting was used to determine the protein expression level of MMP13 and TIMP1, and ELISA was used to detect the content of type II collagen. Combined use of miR-29a and miR-140 successfully reversed the destructive effect of IL-1ß on chondrocyte proliferation, and notably affected the MMP13 and TIMP1 gene expression that regulates extracellular matrix. Although co-transfection of miR-29a and miR-140 did not show a synergistic effect on MMP13 protein expression and type II collagen release, but both of them can significantly suppress the protein abundance of MMP13 and restore the type II collagen release in IL-1ß treated chondrocytes. Compared with single miRNA transfection, cotransfection of both miRNAs exceedingly abrogated the suppressed the protein production of TIMP1 caused by IL-1ß, thereby suggesting potent synergistic action. These results provided novel insights into the important function of miRNAs' collaboration in OA pathological development. The reduced MMP13, and enhanced TIMP1 protein production and type II collagen release also implies that miR-29a and miR-140 combination treatment may be a possible treatment for OA.

Characteristics and indications of hydrogen and oxygen isotopes distribution in lake ice body.

Stable isotopes have been used to identify the characteristics of precipitation, evaporation, basin hydrology, and residence times. However, lakes in the cold regions are usually covered by ice for 5-6 months. To get a better understanding of stable isotopes characteristics and indications in lake ice bodies, ice and water were sampled during the icebound season in both the ice and water bodies in Dali Lake, and deuterium, oxygen-18 total nitrogen (TN), and the major ions were analyzed. The results showed that deuterium and oxygen-18 compositions (δD-δ¹8O) compositions in the ice body were greater than in the water body beneath, scattered on a straight line, and deviating downward from the global meteoric water line in the top right. The ice profile showed that the δD-δ¹8O compositions increased from the ice surface downward and decreased near to the bottom. In contrast, the TN and the major ions in the ice decreased from the ice surface downward and increased near to the bottom, meaning that the concentrations of δ¹8O had a negative correlation with the concentrations of TN and major ions. These indicated that stable isotopes can be used for tracing the nutriment and ion transport processes in the ice body.

[Bioavailability of dissolved organic nitrogen components in the lake sediment to alage].

Samples in the sediments of Wuliangsuhai and Erhai Lake were selected, and the technologies of XAD-8 resins separation and three dimensional fluorescence excitation-emission matrix (3DEEM) spectra were applied, in order to study the bioavailability of dissolved organic nitrogen components to alage under the room cultivation. The obtained results showed that: (1) Average loss of DON and DOC from sediments was below 5% after dividing DON into different groups, which means the technology of XAD- 8 resins separation could be used in the study of DON components in the lake sediment. (2) Through 3DEEM analysis, hydrophilic and hydrophobic DON was dominated by protein-like and humic-like materials in the lake sediment, respectively. (3) Under the hydrophilic component condition, growth curves of algae tended to show an "S" shape with a straight upward trend in the sediments of Wuliangsuhai and Erhai lake,with the maximum algal density reaching 535.5 x 10(4) and 709.5 x 10(4) per milliliter, respectively. Meanwhile, the DON concentrations were significantly reduced after cultivation to 2.46 and 2.98 mg x L(-1), respectively, which suggests that hydrophilic DON in the lake sediment was the bioavailable organic nitrogen for alage. (4) Under the hydrophbic component conditions, growth curves of algae tended to show a "unimodal" shape in the sediments of Wuliangsuhai and Erhai lake,with the maximum algal density reaching 113.5 x 10(4) and 275.5 x 10(4) per milliliter,respectively. The DON concentrations were significantly reduced during the early cultivation period, and then kept stable in the late period, which suggests that the hydrophobic DON component bioavailable to alage was low in short-term, and the hydrophobic DON component had hardly any positive effect on the growth of algae.