Gut microbiota metabolite tyramine ameliorates high-fat diet-induced insulin resistance via increased Ca2+ signaling.

The gut microbiota and their metabolites are closely linked to obesity-related diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, but their causal relationship and underlying mechanisms remain largely elusive. Here, we found that dysbiosis-induced tyramine (TA) suppresses high-fat diet (HFD)-mediated insulin resistance in both Drosophila and mice. In Drosophila, HFD increases cytosolic Ca2+ signaling in enterocytes, which, in turn, suppresses intestinal lipid levels. 16 S rRNA sequencing and metabolomics revealed that HFD leads to increased prevalence of tyrosine decarboxylase (Tdc)-expressing bacteria and resulting tyramine production. Tyramine acts on the tyramine receptor, TyrR1, to promote cytosolic Ca2+ signaling and activation of the CRTC-CREB complex to transcriptionally suppress dietary lipid digestion and lipogenesis in enterocytes, while promoting mitochondrial biogenesis. Furthermore, the tyramine-induced cytosolic Ca2+ signaling is sufficient to suppress HFD-induced obesity and insulin resistance in Drosophila. In mice, tyramine intake also improves glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity under HFD. These results indicate that dysbiosis-induced tyramine suppresses insulin resistance in both flies and mice under HFD, suggesting a potential therapeutic strategy for related metabolic disorders, such as diabetes.

The Patients' Presupposed Distrust to Doctors in China: An Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods Study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the current status of patients' presupposed distrust, and to clarify the causes of high presupposed distrust. Patients and Methods: An explanatory sequential mixed methods study was conducted using a two-stage design. The first phase was a quantitative cross-sectional survey, a total of 384 patients by convenience sampling completed the survey. Study instruments including demographic and clinical characteristics sheet, patients' presupposed distrust scale. In the qualitative phase, 16 patients on the basis of their mean score for all PPDS items were higher than 4 were identified as extreme cases participated in one-to-one semi-structured interviews. Results: The total item mean score for all patients on PPDS was 3.59(3.18, 4.09), which above the median range of the PPDS (item mean score of 3). Personal income level and educational level were significant predictive influencing factors of patients' presupposed distrust, which could explain 17.347% of the variance. The reasons of high patients' presupposed distrust were as follows: moral character, health knowledge, patient perceptions, and the social circumstance. Conclusion: The level of patients' presupposed distrust was high, which needs to be further decreased. Demographic and clinical variables (personal income level, educational level) are identified to be the major contributing factors. The main causes for the formation of the high patients' presupposed distrust are patients internal factors and social circumstance.

Relationship Between Dyadic Coping with Anxiety and Depression in Infertile Couples: Gender Differences and Dyadic Interaction.

Background: This study aims to examine the relationship between anxiety and depression and dyadic coping in infertile couples, exploring gender differences and dyadic interactions in these associations. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 288 couples recruited from the First Affiliated Hospital of Lanzhou University between November 2021 and November 2022. The Dyadic Coping Scale, Anxiety Scale, and Depression Scale were utilized to measure dyadic coping, anxiety, and depression, respectively. The Actor-Partner Interdependence Model was used to analyze the actor effect and partner effect. Results: Wives exhibited significantly higher anxiety and depression scores compared to husbands (p<0.001). No statistically significant difference was found in dyadic coping between wives and husbands. Positive dyadic coping in infertile couples had significant actor effects on anxiety and depression (p<0.05) and partner effects (p<0.05). Positive dyadic coping negatively predicted anxiety and depression of oneself and one's partner. Negative dyadic coping in infertile couples also had significant actor effects on anxiety and depression (p<0.05) and partner effects (p<0.05). Negative dyadic coping positively predicted anxiety and depression of oneself and one's partner. Conclusion: The dyadic coping style of infertile couples has both actor and partner effects on their own and their partner's anxiety and depression. Anxiety and depression in infertile couples are influenced by their own and their partner's dyadic coping style, respectively. Therefore, dyadic coping serves as an important indicator for predicting psychological outcomes in these couples.

Architectural Design of a Blockchain-Enabled, Federated Learning Platform for Algorithmic Fairness in Predictive Health Care: Design Science Study.

BACKGROUND: Developing effective and generalizable predictive models is critical for disease prediction and clinical decision-making, often requiring diverse samples to mitigate population bias and address algorithmic fairness. However, a major challenge is to retrieve learning models across multiple institutions without bringing in local biases and inequity, while preserving individual patients' privacy at each site. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to understand the issues of bias and fairness in the machine learning process used in the predictive health care domain. We proposed a software architecture that integrates federated learning and blockchain to improve fairness, while maintaining acceptable prediction accuracy and minimizing overhead costs. METHODS: We improved existing federated learning platforms by integrating blockchain through an iterative design approach. We used the design science research method, which involves 2 design cycles (federated learning for bias mitigation and decentralized architecture). The design involves a bias-mitigation process within the blockchain-empowered federated learning framework based on a novel architecture. Under this architecture, multiple medical institutions can jointly train predictive models using their privacy-protected data effectively and efficiently and ultimately achieve fairness in decision-making in the health care domain. RESULTS: We designed and implemented our solution using the Aplos smart contract, microservices, Rahasak blockchain, and Apache Cassandra-based distributed storage. By conducting 20,000 local model training iterations and 1000 federated model training iterations across 5 simulated medical centers as peers in the Rahasak blockchain network, we demonstrated how our solution with an improved fairness mechanism can enhance the accuracy of predictive diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: Our study identified the technical challenges of prediction biases faced by existing predictive models in the health care domain. To overcome these challenges, we presented an innovative design solution using federated learning and blockchain, along with the adoption of a unique distributed architecture for a fairness-aware system. We have illustrated how this design can address privacy, security, prediction accuracy, and scalability challenges, ultimately improving fairness and equity in the predictive health care domain.

Retraction of: The Significance of Thromboelastogram in Predicting Postpartum Hemorrhage and Guiding Blood Transfusion.

This retracts the article DOI: 10.7754/Clin.Lab.2021.210317.

Research on the Integration of Cultural Tourism Industry Driven by Digital Economy in the Context of COVID-19-Based on the Data of 31 Chinese Provinces.

This article examines the impact of digital economy on the integration of China's cultural tourism industry in the context of COVID-19 by measuring the integration degree of cultural tourism industry as a substitute variable of cultural tourism integration. The empirical study found that the development of digital economy during the COVID-19 pandemic did promote the integration of China's cultural tourism industry, and compared with year 2019, the digital economy has strengthened the integration of cultural tourism industry. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the development of digital economy has promoted the integration of China's cultural tourism industry, and the positive effect of digital economy on the integration of China's cultural tourism industry has gradually strengthened compared to previous ones. The digital economy has played a mediating role in the impact of COVID-19 on the integration of China's cultural tourism industry. Therefore, China should formulate macropolicies and digital economy-related policies to strengthen the ability of digital economy to deal with risks and improve the digital system.

The Significance of Thromboelastogram in Predicting Postpartum Hemorrhage and Guiding Blood Transfusion.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to probe into the significance of the thromboelastogram (TEG) in predicting postpartum hemorrhage and guiding blood transfusion. METHODS: In total, our work selected 200 cases of postpartum hemorrhage patients admitted to the hospital from April 2017 to November 2020 as the research objects, namely the postpartum hemorrhage group. Another 200 cases without postpartum hemorrhage during hospitalized delivery during the same period were chosen as the no postpartum hemorrhage group. The 200 patients complicated with postpartum hemorrhage were allocated into two groups in accordance with whether the blood transfusion was guided by TEG, 100 cases in each group. The changes of blood coagulation as well as TEG indexes in the two groups with/without postpartum hemorrhage were compared, and the diagnostic significance of TEG detection as well as blood coagulation examination for postpartum hemorrhage were analyzed. The TEG index changes before and after infusion of blood products under TEG guidance were counted. The bleeding time and bleeding volume and the blood products infusion with/without TEG guidance were compared. Based on the changes in the coagulation index (CI) of TEG indexes and in D-dimer, correlation analysis between bleeding time and bleeding volume was carried out, predicting the ROC curve and calculating the AUC area through drawing TEG indexes. RESULTS: In the comparison of coagulation indexes, the APTT, PT as well as TT of the postpartum hemorrhage group were longer than those of the no postpartum hemorrhage group (p < 0.05), and the FIB level was lower than that of the no postpartum hemorrhage group (p < 0.05). The TEG indexes of R, MA, and K in the observation group were greater than those in the control group (p < 0.05); Angle-α and CI were lower than those in the control group (p < 0.05). The sensitivity and specificity of patients receiving TEG detection were higher than those receiving coagulation examination. After injecting blood products, the R, MA, as well as K of TEG indexes were less than before (p < 0.05), and the Angle-α as well as CI were greater than before (p < 0.05). If the patients were guided by TEG, the bleeding time was shorter (p < 0.05) and the bleeding volume was less than those not (p < 0.05). The dosage of blood products, including erythrocytes, fresh frozen plasma, cold precipitation as well as platelets given to those received TEG guidance was less than those who did not (p < 0.05). CI was negatively correlated with the change of D-dimer (p < 0.05), CI was negatively correlated with the change of bleeding time (p < 0.05), and CI was negatively correlated with changes in bleeding volume (p < 0.05). Using R we predicted postpartum hemorrhage AUC area = 0.772. Using MA our team predicted postpartum hemorrhage AUC area = 0.458. Using K we predicted postpartum hemorrhage AUC area = 0.924. Using Angle-α our team predicted postpartum hemorrhage AUC area = 0.728. CONCLUSIONS: For patients with postpartum hemorrhage, applying TEG to guide blood transfusion is available to more promptly guide clinical blood transfusion, reduce the blood transfusion volume, and bleeding volume, thus more effectively promoting the return of blood coagulation to normal and improving the prognosis.

A blockchain empowered and privacy preserving digital contact tracing platform.

The spread of the COVID-19 virus continues to increase fatality rates and exhaust the capacity of healthcare providers. Efforts to prevent transmission of the virus among humans remains a high priority. The current efforts to quarantine involve social distancing, monitoring and tracking the infected patients. However, the spread of the virus is too rapid to be contained only by manual and inefficient human contact tracing activities. To address this challenge, we have developed Connect, a blockchain empowered digital contact tracing platform that can leverage information on positive cases and notify people in their immediate proximity which would thereby reduce the rate at which the infection could spread. This would particularly be effective if sufficient people use the platform and benefit from the targeted recommendations. The recommendations would be made in a privacy-preserving fashion and contain the spread of the virus without the need for an extended period of potential lockdown. Connect is an identity wallet platform which will keep user digital identities and user activity trace data on a blockchain platform using Self-Sovereign Identity(SSI) proofs. User activities include the places he/she has travelled, the country of origin he/she came from, travel and dispatch updates from the airport etc. With these activity trace records, Connect platform can easily identify suspected patients who may be infected with the COVID-19 virus and take precautions before spreading it. By storing digital identities and activity trace records on blockchain-based SSI platform, Connect addresses the common issues in centralized cloud-based storage platforms (e.g. lack of data immutability, lack of traceability).

The T cell factor, pangolin, from Litopenaeus vannamei play a positive role in the immune responses against white spot syndrome virus infection.

As a downstream interactor of ß-catenin, Pangolin which is the homologous protein of the T cell factor/lymphoid enhancer factor (TCF/LEF) in vertebrates is less understood in the research field of immunity. In this study, two isoforms of Litopenaeus vannamei Pangolin (LvPangolin1 and LvPangolin2) were identified. Phylogenetic tree analysis revealed that all of the Pangolin proteins from invertebrates were represented the same lineage. The mRNA expression profiles of the LvPangolin1 and LvPangolin2 genes differed across different tissues. The expression of LvPangolin1 and the amount of LvPangolin1and LvPangolin2 combined (LvPangolinComb) were significantly increased in the haemocyte, intestine and gill but reduced in the hepatopancreas after white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) challenge. The inhibition of LvPangolin1 but not LvPangolinComb significantly reduced the survival rates of L. vannamei after WSSV infection, while significantly higher WSSV viral loads in both LvPangolin1-inhibited and LvPangolinComb-inhibited L. vannamei were observed. Knockdown of LvPangolin by RNAi could distinctly decrease the expression of antimicrobial peptide (AMP) genes and their related transcription factors. All of these results indicate that LvPangolin plays a positive role in the response to WSSV infection and that this may be mediated through regulating the immune signalling pathways which control the expression of AMPs with antiviral abilities.

The Effects of Passenger Risk Perception During the COVID-19 Pandemic on Airline Industry: Evidence From the United States Stock Market.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a dramatic reshaping of passenger risk perception for airline industry. The sharp increase in risk aversion by air passenger has caused a disastrous impact on the tourism service industry, particularly airline industry. Although the existing literature has provided a lot of studies on the impact of the pandemic on travel industry, there are very few studies discussing the impact of change in passenger risk perception on the stock market performance of airline industry. This study considers two types of airline companies, full-service and low-cost. In order to overcome the traditional problem of the Chow test, Quandt-Andrews test is used to identify structural change points during the pandemic in the stock prices of United States airline companies. The result shows that an industry-wide structural change in the stock market performance indeed is found to take place during the pandemic for United States airline companies. Meanwhile, no significant difference is found in the structural change date between the two types of airline companies. The selected airline companies are found to be clustered toward the end of 2020 (November and December) in their structural change dates. Although the strike of the COVID-19 pandemic on airline industry has proven to be widespread and profound, our investigation implies that air passengers have gradually adapted to the new normal of travel activities at some level and partly rebuild their sense of safety under the strict epidemic-control measures.

Determinants of the Fiscal Support of Governments in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Fiscal support measures have different implications for public finances in the near term and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. For this purpose, this paper examines the determinants of governments' fiscal support in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The empirical analysis is based on the cross-sectional data estimations from 129 developed and developing countries. The estimation results indicate that a higher level of uncertainty related to COVID-19 (measured by the World Pandemic Uncertainty Indices) is positively related to fiscal support. Besides, countries with a higher total population and population over 65 years and older provide higher fiscal support. These results are valid when considering the developed countries separately. Policy implications for public finances during the COVID-19 pandemic are also discussed.

One-pot synthesis of novel chiral ß-amino acid derivatives by enantioselective Mannich reactions catalyzed by squaramide cinchona alkaloids.

An efficient one-pot synthesis of novel ß-amino acid derivatives containing a thiadiazole moiety was developed using a chiral squaramide cinchona alkaloid as organocatalyst. The reactions afforded chiral ß-amino acid derivatives in moderate yields and with moderate to excellent enantioselectivities. The present study demonstrated for the first time the use of a Mannich reaction catalyzed by a chiral bifunctional organocatalyst for the one-pot synthesis of novel ß-amino acid derivatives bearing a 1,3,4-thiadiazole moiety on nitrogen.