Environmental heterogeneity affecting spatial distribution of phytoplankton community structure and functional groups in a large eutrophic lake, Lake Chaohu, China.

The growth and development of phytoplankton are influenced by physico-chemical parameters, which can also affect the spatial distribution of phytoplankton community structure. However, it is unclear whether environmental heterogeneity caused by multiple physico-chemical factors can affect the spatial distribution of phytoplankton and its functional groups. In this study, we investigated the seasonal variation and spatial distribution of phytoplankton community structure and its relationships with environmental factors in Lake Chaohu from August 2020 to July 2021. We recorded a total of 190 species from 8 phyla, which were divided into 30 functional groups, including 13 dominating functional groups. The average annual phytoplankton density and biomass were (5.46 ± 7.17) × 107 cells/L and 4.80 ± 4.61 mg/L, respectively. The density and biomass of phytoplankton were higher in summer ((14.64 ± 20.34) × 107 cells/L, 10.61 ± 13.16 mg/L) and autumn ((6.79 ± 3.97) × 107 cells/L, 5.57 ± 2.40 mg/L), with the M and H2 of dominant functional groups. The dominant functional groups were N, C, D, J, MP, H2, and M in spring, whereas functional groups C, N, T, and Y dominated in winter. The distribution of phytoplankton community structure and dominant functional groups exhibited significant spatial heterogeneity in the lake, which was consistent with the environmental heterogeneity of the lake and could be classified into four locations. Location I had higher phytoplankton density and biomass than the other three locations. Additionally, dominant functional groups M, C, and H2 were present throughout the lake, and all 13 dominant functional groups were observed in Location II. Our findings suggest that environmental heterogeneity is a key factor influencing the spatial distribution of phytoplankton functional groups in Lake Chaohu.

The Use of SARS-CoV-2-Positive Donors in Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Since 2019, the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has become a global issue due to its high fatality rate. Over time, the characteristics of the virus have evolved and led to the creation of an omicron strain with higher infectivity but a significantly decreased fatality rate. For patients in urgent need of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), whether the SARS-CoV-2 infection status of donors has a significant impact on HSCT recipients should be clarified. METHODS: To estimate the transplantation risk of SARS-CoV-2-positive donors, 24 patients who underwent HSCT from December 1, 2022 to January 30, 2023 were retrospectively included. The ratio of the observation group (SARS-CoV-2-positive donors, n = 12) to the control group (SARS-CoV-2-negative donors, n = 12) was 1:1. We observed the time of hematopoietic reconstruction, donor chimerism, severe infection, acute graft vs host disease, and hepatic vein occlusion disease during hematopoietic reconstruction. RESULTS: In the observation group, the average time of myeloid hematopoietic reconstruction was 11.58 days, and in the control group, it was 12.17 days (P = .3563 [>.05]). On average, all patients achieved a 90% donor chimerism rate of +13.58 (±4.5) days (P = .5121 [>.05]). The average percentage of patients that achieved successful hematopoietic reconstruction was 96.75% in the observation group and 96.31% in the control group (P = .7819 [>.05]). A total of 6 adverse events occurred during this study: 3 in the observation group and 3 in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Our preliminary results showed favorable short-term outcomes in recipients of SARS-CoV-2-positive HCST donors.

Emotional experiences of service robots' anthropomorphic appearance: a multimodal measurement method.

Anthropomorphic appearance is a key factor to affect users' attitudes and emotions. This research aimed to measure emotional experience caused by robots' anthropomorphic appearance with three levels - high, moderate, and low - using multimodal measurement. Fifty participants' physiological and eye-tracker data were recorded synchronously while they observed robot images that were displayed in random order. Afterward, the participants reported subjective emotional experiences and attitudes towards those robots. The results showed that the images of the moderately anthropomorphic service robots induced higher pleasure and arousal ratings, and yielded significantly larger pupil diameter and faster saccade velocity, than did the low or high robots. Moreover, participants' facial electromyography, skin conductance, and heart-rate responses were higher when observing moderately anthropomorphic service robots. An implication of the research is that service robots' appearance should be designed to be moderately anthropomorphic; too many human-like features or machine-like features may disturb users' positive emotions and attitudes.Practitioner Summary: This research aimed to measure emotional experience caused by three types of anthropomorphic service robots using a multimodal measurement experiment. The results showed that moderately anthropomorphic service robots evoked more positive emotion than high and low anthropomorphic robots. Too many human-like features or machine-like features may disturb users' positive emotions.

Cloning and functional analysis of the molting gene CYP302A1 of Daphnia sinensis.

BACKGROUND: Molting is an important physiological process in the growth and development of arthropoda, which is mainly regulated by juvenile hormone and ecdysone. CYP302A1 is a key enzyme which plays a critical role in the synthesis of ecdysone in insects, but it has not been identified in cladocera. RESULTS: The CYP302Al gene of Daphnia sinensis was cloned and its function was analyzed in this paper. The CYP302Al gene of D. sinensis was 5926 bp in full-length, with an open reading frame (ORF) of 1596 bp that encoded 531 amino acids (aa), a molecular weight of 60.82 kDa and an isoelectric point of 9.29. The amino acid sequence analysis revealed that there were five characteristic conserved regions of cytochrome P450 family (namely helix-C, helix-K, helix-I, PERF and heme-binding). In dsRNA mediated experiment, the expression level of CYP302A1 gene decreased significantly (knock-down of 56.22%) in the 5% Escherichia coli concentration treatment. In addition, the expression levels of EcR and USP and HR3 genes in the downstream were also significantly decreased, whereas that of FTZ-f1 gene increased significantly. In the 5% E. coli treatment, the molting time at maturity of D. sinensis prolonged, and the development of embryos in the incubation capsule appeared abnormal or disintegrated. The whole-mount in situ hybridization showed that the CYP302A1 gene of D. sinensis had six expression sites before RNA interference (RNAi), which located in the first antennal ganglion, ovary, cecae, olfactory hair, thoracic limb and tail spine. However, the expression signal of the CYP302A1 gene of D. sinensis disappeared in the first antennal ganglion and obviously attenuated in the ovary after RNAi. CONCLUSION: The CYP302A1 gene played an important role in the ecdysone synthesis pathway of D. sinensis, and the knock-down of the gene affected the molting and reproduction of D. sinensis.

Effects of toxic Microcystis aeruginosa on the expression of Hox genes in Daphnia similoides sinensis.

Lake eutrophication and cyanobacterial blooms have become worldwide environmental issues. Under cyanobacterial blooms (especially Microcystis), Daphnia spp. can transfer beneficial information to their offspring in order to improve adaptability. Hox genes are important regulatory factors of transcription in metazoans, and are involved in the growth and development of organisms. However, the mechanisms of Microcystis on the expression of Hox genes in Daphnia are unclear. In this study, the effects of Microcystis aeruginosa on Hox gene expression in the mothers and offspring (F1) of two Daphnia similoides sinensis clones were investigated using a mixed diet of M. aeruginosa and Scenedesmus obliquus. Compared with the 100%S food treatment, the survival rates at the end of the experiment of clone 1-F1 in the food treatments containing M. aeruginosa were significantly lower, but it was significantly higher for clone 2-F1 in the 20%M + 80%S food treatment. Moreover, the survival rates at the end of the experiment of clone 1-F1 in the food treatments containing M. aeruginosa were significantly higher than those of their mother. Based on previous transcriptome data, 14 Hox genes of D. similoides sinensis were identified, including Abd-B, CDX-1, Dll, HOX-1, HOX-2, HOXA1, HOXA2, HOXB3, HOXB3-2, HOXB7, HOXC4, HOXC7, HOXC8, and HOXD10. The expressions of Abd-B, HOX-2, HOXA1, HOXC7, and HOXD10 of clone 2-mothers in the 40%M + 60%S food treatment were 2.9-22.5 times as high as in the 100%S food treatment, whereas the expressions of CDX-1, HOX-1, HOXB3, and HOXD10 of clone 1-mothers were 4.8-13.1 times at same food level. The expression of HOXA2, HOXC7, HOXC8, and HOXD10 of clone 1-F1 in the 40%M + 60%S food treatment was 8.2-21.1 times as high as in the 100%S food treatment. However, compared with the 100%S food treatment, the expressions of CDX-1 in the mothers and F1 of clone 2 and HOXB7 in the mothers of clone 1 in the food treatments containing M. aeruginosa were significantly lower (p < .05). Our results suggest that the offspring (F1) produced by D. similoides sinensis mother pre-exposed to toxic M. aeruginosa had stronger adaptability to M. aeruginosa than their mothers. Moreover, Hox gene expressions of D. similoides sinensis had obvious differences between clones under stress of toxic M. aeruginosa.

Is an anthropomorphic app icon more attractive? Evidence from neuroergonomomics.

Exploring what types of app icons are attractive has been a topic of great interest in recent years. The main purpose of this study was to explore the neural mechanism of attention capturing of the anthropomorphic app icons based on neuroergonomics. Participants' perception of different app icons was investigated by using event-related potentials (ERPs) and attractiveness evaluation. The results showed that anthropomorphic app icons were evaluated more attractive and elicted larger P2, P3 and LPP amplitude than non-anthropomorphic app icons, which indicated an attention bias to attractive anthropomprphic app icons. The time course of the attention towards anthropomorphic app icons includes three main processes: an early stimulus-driven perceptual detection of app icon features (P2 during 160-200 ms), an involuntary allocation of attention to evaluate and categorize app icons (P3 during 300-500 ms), and experiencing different emotions to anthropomorphic versus non-anthropomorphic app icons (LPP during 500-800 ms). That is, the process of users' perception and attention toward app icons combines "bottom-up" and "top-down" processes. Our findings suggest a new perspective to use ERP components (P2, P3, and LPP) to deep understanding of app icon design. A practical implication is that app icons could be designed using anthropomorphic elements to attract users.

It is Time to Have Rest: How do Break Types Affect Muscular Activity and Perceived Discomfort During Prolonged Sitting Work.

BACKGROUND: Prolonged sitting at work can lead to adverse health outcomes. The health risk of office workers is an increasing concern for the society and industry, with prolonged sitting work becoming more prevalent. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the variation in muscle activities during prolonged sitting work and found out when and how to take a break to mitigate the risk of muscle symptoms. METHODS: A preliminary survey was conducted to find out the prevalence of muscle discomfort in sedentary work. Firstly, a 2-h sedentary computer work was designed based on the preliminary study to investigate the variation in muscle activities. Twenty-four participants took part in the electromyography (EMG) measurement study. The EMG variations in the trapezius muscle and latissimus dorsi were investigated. Then the intervention time was determined based on the EMG measurement study. Secondly, 48 participants were divided into six groups to compare the effectiveness of every break type (passive break, active break of changing their posture, and stand and stretch their body with 5 or 10 mins). Finally, data consisting of EMG amplitudes and spectra and subjective assessment of discomfort were analyzed. RESULTS: In the EMG experiment, results from the joint analysis of the spectral and amplitude method showed muscle fatigue after about 40 mins of sedentary work. In the intervention experiment, the results showed that standing and stretching for 5 mins was the most effective break type, and this type of break could keep the muscles' state at a recovery level for about 30-45 mins. CONCLUSIONS: This study offers the possibility of being applied to office workers and provides preliminary data support and theoretical exploration for a follow-up early muscle fatigue detection system.

Measurement and identification of mental workload during simulated computer tasks with multimodal methods and machine learning.

This study attempted to multimodally measure mental workload and validate indicators for estimating mental workload. A simulated computer work composed of mental arithmetic tasks with different levels of difficulty was designed and used in the experiment to measure physiological signals (heart rate, heart rate variability, electromyography, electrodermal activity, and respiration), subjective ratings of mental workload (the NASA Task Load Index), and task performance. The indices from electrodermal activity and respiration had a significant increment as task difficulty increased. There were no significant differences between the average heart rate and the low-frequency/high-frequency ratio among tasks. The classification of mental workload using combined indices as inputs showed that classification models combining physiological signals and task performance can reach satisfying accuracy at 96.4% and an accuracy of 78.3% when only using physiological indices as inputs. The present study also showed that ECG and EDA signals have good discriminating power for mental workload detection. Practitioner summary: The methods used in this study could be applied to office workers, and the findings provide preliminary support and theoretical exploration for follow-up early mental workload detection systems, whose implementation in the real world could beneficially impact worker health and company efficiency. Abbreviations: NASA-TLX: the national aeronautics and space administration-task load index; ECG: electrocardiographic; EDA: electrodermal activity; EEG: electroencephalogram; LDA: linear discriminant analysis; SVM: support vector machine; KNN: k-nearest neighbor; ANNs: artificial neural networks; EMG: electromyography; PPG: photoplethysmography; SD: standard deviation; BMI: body mass index; DSSQ: dundee stress state questionnaire; ANOVA: analysis of variance; SC: skin conductance; RMS: root mean square; AVHR: the average heart rate; HR: heart rate; LF/HF: the ratio between the low frequencies band and the high frequency band; PSD: power spectral density; MF: median frequency; HRV: heart rate variability; BPNN: backpropagation neural network.

Circular RNA cZNF292 silence alleviates OGD/R-induced injury through up-regulation of miR-22 in rat neural stem cells (NSCs).

Background: Hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a prevailing severe brain damage disease in newborns, and caused by perinatal asphyxia cerebral ischaemia and reperfusion. Here, we investigated the role of cZNF292 in oxygen-glucose deprivation/reperfusion (OGD/R)-induced neural stem cells (NSCs) injury, and explored the underlying molecular mechanism.Methods: Before NSCs were subjected to OGD/R treatment, NSCs were transfected with or without overexpressing cZNF292, si-cZNF292 or miR-22 inhibitor. Viability, apoptosis and potential molecular mechanism were examined. Cell viability and apoptotic rate were evaluated utilizing cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) and flow cytometry. The cZNF292 and miR-22 expression was determined utilizing quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR). Moreover, apoptosis and Wnt/ß-catenin and PKC/ERK pathways-associated proteins were quantified applying western blot.Results: OGD/R repressed viability and promoted apoptosis of NSCs. Also, cZNF292 expression was promoted by OGD/R treatment. Moreover, cZNF292 overexpression further caused OGD/R-stimulated damage. Inversely, silencing cZNF292 alleviated OGD/R-stimulated damage in NSCs. In addition, miR-22 expression was negatively regulated by cZNF292. It was confirmed that silencing cZNF292 attenuated OGD/R-induced NSCs injury and promoted the activation of Wnt/ß-catenin and PKC/ERK pathways via the up-regulation of miR-22.Conclusions: The cZNF292 silence alleviated OGD/R-induced injury through the up-regulation of miR-22 in NSCs, and which furnished the theoretical basis for further research on HIE progression.

[Research progress on relationship between urban greenspace distribution and the socioeconomic characteristics of residents]. / åŸŽå¸‚ç»¿åœ°æ ¼å±€ä¸Žå± æ°‘ç¤¾ä¼šç»æµŽç‰¹å¾å ³ç³»ç ”ç©¶è¿›å±•.

Urban greenspace, which serves as a place for residents to connect with nature and relax, provides important ecosystem services. Access to greenspace is often related to the socio-economic characteristics of residents, which received a lot attention from researchers and practitioners. Previous studies have mostly focused on single city to analyze the spatial relationship between greenspace distribution and residents' characteristics. We conducted a meta-analysis with global studies. The objectives were to classify findings from different cases and investigate the impacts from the location of research area, indicator and analytical method, and summarized major factors influen-cing the relationship between greenspace distribution and residents' characteristics. The results showed that more than half of the cases (58.2%) found that the socially advantaged population benefited more from greenspace. About a quarter cases (25.4%) revealed the opposite, that was, the disadvantaged population benefited more from greenspace. The remaining case studies (16.4%) did not find significant correlation between them. The studies reviewed here were diverse in terms of scale, indicator selection, and analytical method. Overall, we found no connection between finding and the choice of scale/indicator/analytical method. The reviewed case studies were mostly conducted in cities of western countries, which differed in their development trajectories and urban characteristics from cities in China. To understand association between urban greenspace and residents' characteristics in China, we urged to carry out more local studies, which would potentially provide scientific evidence for building sustainable cities during rapid urbanization.

Spontaneous generation of orbital angular momentum crystals using a monolithic Nd:YAG nonplanar ring laser.

We report the emission of localized orbital angular momentum (OAM) crystals in a millimeter-size monolithic Nd:YAG nonplanar ring laser. Narrow-linewidth single-frequency lasing in the kilohertz level featuring crystal-like vortices is obtained via phase locking of Laguerre-Gaussian modes in the cavity. It is found that the spatially degenerate OAM of high-order LG modes can be easily broken by superimposing a low-order mode, leading to crystal-like vortices. Our theoretical analysis is found to be in agreement with the experimental results for both intensity and interference patterns.

Direct generation of a narrow-linewidth Laguerre-Gaussian vortex laser in a monolithic nonplanar oscillator.

Vortex laser beams carrying orbital angular momentum have been attracting a lot of interest in recent years. Here we demonstrate the direct generation of a vortex laser in a monolithic nonplanar ring cavity. The unidirectional and single-frequency operation of Laguerre-Gaussian modes is observed and characterized. Fork interferograms have been obtained using a simple interferometer based on a plano-concave lens, and the topological charge of vortex beam is determined. A spectral linewidth as narrow as 2.3 kHz is measured by beating with a reference laser. We believe that such a high coherent vortex laser can be beneficial for numerous applications, including precision measurements and optical communications.

Correlation between TLR2, TLR3, TLR4, and TLR9 polymorphisms and susceptibility to and prognosis of severe hepatitis among the newborns.

BACKGROUND: This study was aimed to explore how toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2), TLR3, TLR4 and TLR9 influenced the risk and prognosis of severe hepatitis among the Chinese newborns. METHODS: Altogether 135 newborns diagnosed with severe hepatitis and 140 healthy newborns were included in this study. Totally 12 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within TLR2, TLR3, TLR4, and TLR9 were chosen and genotyped by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using the logistic regression. The univariate and multivariate analyses were used to analyze independent factors for prognosis of severe hepatitis among the Chinese newborns. RESULTS: The SNPs within TLR2 [ie, rs1898830 (A>G) and rs3804100 (T>C)], TLR3 [ie, rs1879026 (G>T)], TLR4 [ie, rs2149356 (T>G)], and TLR9 [ie, rs187084 (T>C), rs352139 (A>G), and rs352140 (C>T)] were significantly associated with modified risk of neonatal severe hepatitis (all P<.05). Furthermore, rs1898830, rs1879026, rs187084 and rs352139 were also demonstrated to modulate the prognosis [ie, aspartate aminotransferase (AST)/alanine transaminase (ALT)>1.5] of newborns with severe hepatitis (all P<.05). Interestingly, the haplotype A-C-G-G-C-A-T were associated with higher susceptibility to neonatal severe hepatitis, and the newborns carrying haplotype A-C-G-G-C-A-T appeared to be correlated with more favorable prognosis (all P<.05). CONCLUSIONS: Certain SNPs and haplotypes within TLR2, TLR3, TLR4, and TLR9 can be considered as the potentially treatment targets for neonatal severe hepatitis.

Associations of LBX1 gene and adolescent idiopathic scoliosis susceptibility: a meta-analysis based on 34,626 subjects.

BACKGROUND: The results of studies investigating the association between the ladybird homeobox 1 (LBX1) gene polymorphisms and the risk of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) are not all the same. As such, we performed a meta-analysis to estimate the association between LBX1 gene polymorphisms and AIS susceptibility. METHODS: Relevant studies published before 15 November 2015 were identified by searching PubMed, EMBASE, ISI web of knowledge, EBSCO, CNKI and CBM. The strength of relationship was assessed by using odds ratios (ORs) and 95 % confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: A total number of eight case-control studies including 10,088 cases and 24,538 controls were identified. The results showed that T allele of rs111090870 increased AIS susceptibility in Asians (T vs. C, OR = 1.22, 95 % CI: 1.16-1.29, P < 0.001), Caucasians (T vs. C, OR = 1.17, 95 % CI: 1.14-1.21, P < 0.001) and in female (T vs. C, OR = 1.21, 95 % CI: 1.17-1.25, P < 0.001). The G allele of rs678741 decreased AIS risk in female (G vs. A, OR = 0.83, 95 % CI: 0.81-0.85, P < 0.001), and the G allele of the rs625039 increased AIS susceptibility in Asians (G vs. A, OR = 1.14, 95 % CI: 1.11-1.17, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our meta-analysis provides evidence that rs111090870, rs678741 and rs625039 polymorphisms near LBX1 gene are associated with AIS susceptibility in some populations. However, our findings are based on only a limited number of studies.

[NF-kappa B activation in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of children with epilepsy].

OBJECTIVE: To study the changes and significance of NF-kappa B activation in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of children with epilepsy. METHODS: NF-kappa B activation in PBMC was assayed by the flow cytometry in 32 healthy children and 64 children with epilepsy before and after treatment. The 64 epileptic children were subdivided into three groups: systemic seizure, partial seizure and unknown classification. RESULTS: NF-kappa B activation in PBMC in three epilepsy subgroups were significantly higher than that in healthy controls. The systemic seizure group showed significantly increased NF-kappa B activation in PBMC compared with the partial seizure group (p<0.01) and the unknown classification group (p<0.05). After treatment NF-kappa B activation in PBMC in three epilepsy subgroups was significantly reduced (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: NF-kappa B activation in PBMC increased in children with epilepsy, and it was positively correlated with the severity of seizures.