BACKGROUND: Recent studies have provided compelling evidence that exposure to brominated flame retardants (BFRs) can adversely affect human health. We aim to explore the potential impact of BFRs on adiposity and central obesity. METHODS: Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) cycles conducted between 2009 and 2014 was used to study the connections between variables. After filtering, we analyzed a sample of 4,110 adults aged 20 years and above. Our goal was to examine the potential association between BFRs and consequences and investigate the part played by oxidative stress and inflammatory markers as intermediaries. To achieve this, we used advanced statistical methods such as weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression, quantile-based g-computation (QGC), and the Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR). RESULTS: The findings showed that among the examined chemicals, exposure to PBDE85 (weight: 41%), PBDE100 (24%), and PBB153 (23%) may be the dominant contributors to general obesity risk. Upon controlling for all variables that could impact the results, it was found that the QGC outcomes indicated a positive correlation between exposure to mixtures of brominated flame retardants and the occurrence of abdominal obesity (OR = 1.187, 95% CI: 1.056-1.334, p = 0.004). Significant contributions were made by PBDE85 (52%), PBB153 (27%), and PBDE100 (21%). Mediation analysis shows that lymphatic cells (LC) and albumin (ALB) partially mediate the link between brominated flame retardants and obesity. The results of BKMR are generally consistent with those of WQS and QGC. CONCLUSION At a population level, our research has revealed a noteworthy correlation between BFRs and obesity. However, further investigation is required through prospective cohort studies and in-depth mechanistic exploratory studies.
Humans ; Flame Retardants/adverse effects* ; Oxidative Stress/drug effects* ; Adult ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Inflammation/epidemiology* ; Obesity/chemically induced* ; Biomarkers/blood* ; Nutrition Surveys ; Mediation Analysis ; Young Adult ; United States/epidemiology* ; Environmental Exposure/adverse effects* ; Aged ; Environmental Pollutants/adverse effects* ; Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers/adverse effects*

Objective:To explore whether perioperative oral probiotic therapy reduces infectious complications following pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD), aiming to obtain higher-level evidence for clinical practice.Methods:A total of 81 participants undergoing PD at the Department of Pancreatic and Metabolic Surgery, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital & Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Nanjing University, from May 2024 to December 2024 were enrolled in this single-center, prospective, randomized controlled trial. The participants were randomly divided into a probiotic treatment group and a control group (receiving conventional treatment without probiotics) using a random number method. The primary outcomes included the incidence of postoperative infectious complications and intra-abdominal infection, and the secondary outcomes were the recovery of gastrointestinal function, postoperative hospital stay, and duration and costs of antibiotic use. The hematological indicators including inflammation and immune markers on postoperative days (POD) 1, 3, 5, and 7 were also compared between these two groups.Results:Finally 72 cases (39 males and 33 females) were analyzed, with 36 patients in the probiotic treatment group and 36 patients in the control group. Compared to the control group, the probiotic treatment group showed statistically significant reductions in the incidence of infectious complications (33.3% vs. 66.7%, P=0.029), intra-abdominal infection (27.8% vs. 58.3%, P=0.030), and incidence of delayed gastric emptying (0 vs. 16.7%, P=0.033). Also, the probiotic treatment group exhibited significantly faster recovery in postoperative bowel movements and shorter time to defecation, liquid diet, and semi-liquid diet (all P<0.05). Additionally, the probiotic treatment group had significantly shorter hospital stay, reduced duration of antibiotic use, and lower antibiotic costs (all P<0.05). Finally, the probiotic treatment group had significantly higher lymphocyte counts on POD 1 ( P<0.05) and showed a significant downward trend in inflammatory markers such as interleukin-6 on PODs 3 and 5 and C-reactive protein on POD 7 (all P<0.05). Conclusions:Perioperative application of probiotic preparations in PD may reduce the incidence of postoperative infectious complications, especially intra-abdominal infection. Additionally, it can prevent delayed gastric emptying, promote the recovery of postoperative gastrointestinal function, shorten hospital stay, and reduce the use of antibiotics. These benefits may be related to the improvement of postoperative inflammatory status.

An ideal dermal filler should integrate filling, repair, and anti-aging effects, with immediate tissue augmentation, slow degradation, and progressive stimulation of collagen regeneration. However, commonly used hyaluronic acid (HA) hydrogels, while effective for rapid filling, suffer from limited duration of support, weak cell adhesion, and an inability to promote collagen regeneration. Silk fibroin (SF), a natural protein from silkworm cocoons, is known for its excellent cell adhesion and collagen-stimulating abilities. However, its limited gelation capability restricts its potential application as a standalone injectable hydrogel. Based on a complementary strategy, this study combines the rapid gelling properties of HA with the collagen regenerative properties of SF to create a co-crosslinked HA-SF hydrogel. The composite hydrogel merges HA's rapid filling effect with SF's strong tissue adhesion and collagen-stimulating abilities. The formulation, physicochemical properties, degradation, biocompatibility, and filling effects of the HA-SF hydrogel were systematically investigated. HA-SF hydrogel exhibits excellent mechanical properties and ensures long-term support while maintaining injectability. Interestingly, after intradermal injection in the UVB-induced photoaging model, HA-SF hydrogel not only enhances hydrogel-cell interaction but also continues to stimulate collagen regeneration, especially type III collagen. This dual action achieves the biological effects of repair and anti-aging while maintaining the filling effect. Proteomic analysis confirms that repair and anti-aging effects are enhanced by the regulation of skin fibroblasts and modulation of amino acid and lipid metabolism. This composite hydrogel holds strong promise for clinical applications, offering a safer, long-lasting, and more natural injectable filler that combines filling, repair, and anti-aging into one system.

Objective:To explore whether perioperative oral probiotic therapy reduces infectious complications following pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD), aiming to obtain higher-level evidence for clinical practice.Methods:A total of 81 participants undergoing PD at the Department of Pancreatic and Metabolic Surgery, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital & Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Nanjing University, from May 2024 to December 2024 were enrolled in this single-center, prospective, randomized controlled trial. The participants were randomly divided into a probiotic treatment group and a control group (receiving conventional treatment without probiotics) using a random number method. The primary outcomes included the incidence of postoperative infectious complications and intra-abdominal infection, and the secondary outcomes were the recovery of gastrointestinal function, postoperative hospital stay, and duration and costs of antibiotic use. The hematological indicators including inflammation and immune markers on postoperative days (POD) 1, 3, 5, and 7 were also compared between these two groups.Results:Finally 72 cases (39 males and 33 females) were analyzed, with 36 patients in the probiotic treatment group and 36 patients in the control group. Compared to the control group, the probiotic treatment group showed statistically significant reductions in the incidence of infectious complications (33.3% vs. 66.7%, P=0.029), intra-abdominal infection (27.8% vs. 58.3%, P=0.030), and incidence of delayed gastric emptying (0 vs. 16.7%, P=0.033). Also, the probiotic treatment group exhibited significantly faster recovery in postoperative bowel movements and shorter time to defecation, liquid diet, and semi-liquid diet (all P<0.05). Additionally, the probiotic treatment group had significantly shorter hospital stay, reduced duration of antibiotic use, and lower antibiotic costs (all P<0.05). Finally, the probiotic treatment group had significantly higher lymphocyte counts on POD 1 ( P<0.05) and showed a significant downward trend in inflammatory markers such as interleukin-6 on PODs 3 and 5 and C-reactive protein on POD 7 (all P<0.05). Conclusions:Perioperative application of probiotic preparations in PD may reduce the incidence of postoperative infectious complications, especially intra-abdominal infection. Additionally, it can prevent delayed gastric emptying, promote the recovery of postoperative gastrointestinal function, shorten hospital stay, and reduce the use of antibiotics. These benefits may be related to the improvement of postoperative inflammatory status.

Purpose To analyze the value of a deep learning(DL)radiomics model based on dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI images in predicting the expression of Ki-67 status in breast cancer.Materials and Methods A retrospective analysis of 152 breast cancer patients confirmed by pathological results at Guangdong Women and Children Hospital,MRI images and clinical pathological data were reviewed,and based on postoperative immunohistochemistry results,the images of the high and low expression groups of Ki-67 were randomly sampled in a ratio of 8∶2 to form a training set of 122 cases and a validation set of 30 cases.Single-factor and multi-factor Logistic regression analyses of clinical data were performed to select independent predictors of breast cancer expressing Ki-67 status.The ResNet-18 model was used as the basic model for DL feature extraction.Hand-crafted radiomic features and DL features were extracted.Eight machine learning models were constructed based on clinical features,hand-crafted radiomic features,DL features,and their combinations.The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was used to evaluate the predictive performance of the models,and the best model was determined as the output model.Results The progesterone receptor status(OR=0.764,P=0.040)and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 status(OR=1.187,P=0.046)were independent clinical predictors of breast cancer expressing Ki-67 status.The combined feature models demonstrated superior performance over the individual feature models,and the support vector machine algorithm had the highest prediction performance in the validation set,with an area under the curve of 0.847.Conclusion The DL radiomics model based on dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI images can effectively predict the expression of Ki-67 status in breast cancer.The support vector machine algorithm combined with feature model is the best,which can help the clinical diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer and prognosis evaluation.

Objective:Based on the process theory of stress effect, the mediating effect of health literacy and perceived social support between perceived control and fatigue symptom of asthmatic patients was analyzed, which provide the evidence for the formulation of intervention programs to relieve fatigue in patients.Methods:Adopting a cross-sectional survey design, from January 2019 to November 2023, asthmatic patients at The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University (Feidong County People′s Hospital) were selected by convenience sampling method and investigated by the General Information Questionnaire, Fatigue Severity Scale, Perceived Control of Asthma Questionnaire, Health Literacy Management Scale, and Perceived Social Support Scale. Pearson correlation analysis was used to investigate the correlation between fatigue symptom, perceived control, health literacy, and perceived social support in asthma patients. A structural equation model was constructed using AMOS24.0 software and conduct mediation analysis.Results:A total of 260 questionnaires were distributed, and 241 valid questionnaires were collected. There were 110 males and 131 females aged (55.48 ± 15.03) years old. The scores of Fatigue Severity Scale, Perceived Control of Asthma Questionnaire, Health Literacy Management Scale, and Perceived Social Support Scale were (4.27 ± 1.68), (31.72 ± 8.51), (85.71 ± 19.36), (46.97 ± 11.79) points, respectively. Pearson correlation analysis showed that fatigue symptom was negatively correlated with perceived control, health literacy, and perceived social support ( r=-0.719, -0.716, -0.767, all P<0.01). The mediating model showed that perceived control had a significant direct effect on fatigue symptom ( β=-0.204, 95% CI-0.252--0.169). Moreover, perceived control also indirectly affected fatigue symptom through the independent mediating effect of health literacy ( β=-0.378, 95% CI-0.405--0.202), the independent mediating effect of perceived social support ( β=-0.227, 95% CI-0.381--0.203), and the chain mediating effect of health literacy and perceived social support ( β=-0.089, 95% CI-0.142--0.025), which accounting for 77.3% of the total effect. Conclusions:Health literacy and perceived social support play a mediating role in the correlation between perceived control and fatigue symptom, which can promote health literacy and perceived social support and thus alleviate fatigue symptom in asthmatic patients.

Purpose To analyze the value of a deep learning(DL)radiomics model based on dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI images in predicting the expression of Ki-67 status in breast cancer.Materials and Methods A retrospective analysis of 152 breast cancer patients confirmed by pathological results at Guangdong Women and Children Hospital,MRI images and clinical pathological data were reviewed,and based on postoperative immunohistochemistry results,the images of the high and low expression groups of Ki-67 were randomly sampled in a ratio of 8∶2 to form a training set of 122 cases and a validation set of 30 cases.Single-factor and multi-factor Logistic regression analyses of clinical data were performed to select independent predictors of breast cancer expressing Ki-67 status.The ResNet-18 model was used as the basic model for DL feature extraction.Hand-crafted radiomic features and DL features were extracted.Eight machine learning models were constructed based on clinical features,hand-crafted radiomic features,DL features,and their combinations.The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was used to evaluate the predictive performance of the models,and the best model was determined as the output model.Results The progesterone receptor status(OR=0.764,P=0.040)and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 status(OR=1.187,P=0.046)were independent clinical predictors of breast cancer expressing Ki-67 status.The combined feature models demonstrated superior performance over the individual feature models,and the support vector machine algorithm had the highest prediction performance in the validation set,with an area under the curve of 0.847.Conclusion The DL radiomics model based on dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI images can effectively predict the expression of Ki-67 status in breast cancer.The support vector machine algorithm combined with feature model is the best,which can help the clinical diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer and prognosis evaluation.

Objective:Based on the process theory of stress effect, the mediating effect of health literacy and perceived social support between perceived control and fatigue symptom of asthmatic patients was analyzed, which provide the evidence for the formulation of intervention programs to relieve fatigue in patients.Methods:Adopting a cross-sectional survey design, from January 2019 to November 2023, asthmatic patients at The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University (Feidong County People′s Hospital) were selected by convenience sampling method and investigated by the General Information Questionnaire, Fatigue Severity Scale, Perceived Control of Asthma Questionnaire, Health Literacy Management Scale, and Perceived Social Support Scale. Pearson correlation analysis was used to investigate the correlation between fatigue symptom, perceived control, health literacy, and perceived social support in asthma patients. A structural equation model was constructed using AMOS24.0 software and conduct mediation analysis.Results:A total of 260 questionnaires were distributed, and 241 valid questionnaires were collected. There were 110 males and 131 females aged (55.48 ± 15.03) years old. The scores of Fatigue Severity Scale, Perceived Control of Asthma Questionnaire, Health Literacy Management Scale, and Perceived Social Support Scale were (4.27 ± 1.68), (31.72 ± 8.51), (85.71 ± 19.36), (46.97 ± 11.79) points, respectively. Pearson correlation analysis showed that fatigue symptom was negatively correlated with perceived control, health literacy, and perceived social support ( r=-0.719, -0.716, -0.767, all P<0.01). The mediating model showed that perceived control had a significant direct effect on fatigue symptom ( β=-0.204, 95% CI-0.252--0.169). Moreover, perceived control also indirectly affected fatigue symptom through the independent mediating effect of health literacy ( β=-0.378, 95% CI-0.405--0.202), the independent mediating effect of perceived social support ( β=-0.227, 95% CI-0.381--0.203), and the chain mediating effect of health literacy and perceived social support ( β=-0.089, 95% CI-0.142--0.025), which accounting for 77.3% of the total effect. Conclusions:Health literacy and perceived social support play a mediating role in the correlation between perceived control and fatigue symptom, which can promote health literacy and perceived social support and thus alleviate fatigue symptom in asthmatic patients.

Objective:To compare the characteristics of gait disorders between patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus(iNPH)and Parkinson's disease(PD)patients.Methods:General clinical data and gait assessment results of 16 iNPH patients, 20 PD patients, and 23 healthy adults seeking treatment at Tianjin Huanhu Hospital between January 2020 and December 2020 were retrospectively analyzed.Gait analysis was conducted using the Mobility Lab? system with APDM Opal sensors from the US.Results:The 16 patients in the iNPH group had a mean age of(68.81±8.73), the 20 patients in the PD group had a mean age of(65.05±10.15), and the 23 adults in the control group had a mean age of(59.96±6.20).There was no significant difference in age between the iNPH group and the PD group( P>0.05).However, the iNPH group was older than the healthy control group( t=3.71, P<0.05).The disease duration of the iNPH group was(22.94±23.19)months, which was shorter than(92.60±53.70)months in the PD group( t=5.23, P<0.05).The mini-mental state examination(MMSE)score(17.13±7.08)and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment(MoCA)score(11.75±5.43)of the iNPH group were significantly lower than those in the PD group[(24.17±4.73), t=3.45, P<0.05、(21.29±5.82), t=4.86, P<0.05]and the control group[(26.70±1.61), t=5.31, P<0.05、(22.78±3.30), t=7.89, P<0.05].Compared with the PD group, the iNPH group had a significantly lower foot clearance[right: (1.65±0.76)cm vs.(2.56±1.30)cm]and smaller bilateral toe-off angles[left: (20.59±6.11)° vs.(28.43±6.36)°; right: (20.78±6.88)° vs.(28.12±7.49)°, t=3.74、3.02, respectively, all P<0.05].There were statistically significant differences in all gait parameters in iNPH patients compared with the control group( P<0.05). Conclusions:iNPH patients exhibit clear gait disturbance, which is more prominent than in PD patients.The wearable gait analysis system can accurately assess gait disorders in iNPH patients, and can be applied to gait assessment and the development of rehabilitation plans.

Objective:To explore the changes of gait flexibility and stability in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) 2 years after deep brain stimulation (DBS).Methods:Twenty PD patients accepted DBS in Department of Neurosurgery, Tianjin Huanhu Hospital from October 2019 to November 2021 were enrolled. Motor symptoms were evaluated by Movement Disorder Society-unified Parkinson's disease rating scale III (MDS-UPDRS-III) at preoperative medication-off state, postoperative medication-off state, and postoperative medication-on state. Mini-mental state examination (MMSE) and Montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA) were used to assess the cognition and 39-item Parkinson's disease questionnaire (PDQ-39) was used to evaluate the quality of life at preoperative medication-on state and postoperative medication-on state. A three-dimensional gait analyzer was used to record the gait parameters during Instrumented Stand and Walk test (ISAW) at preoperative medication-off state, postoperative medication-off state, and postoperative medication-on state. Differences in motor symptom scores, cognitive scores, quality of life scores, as well as changes in gait flexibility and stability were compared before and after DBS.Results:(1) The MDS-UPDRS-Ⅲ scores at preoperative medication-off state, postoperative medication-off state, and postoperative medication-on state ([45.30±12.57], [24.95±10.74], [15.80±7.19]) were decreased successively, with significant differences ( P<0.05).(2) Compared with those before surgery, PD patients had significantly lower levodopa equivalent daily dose (LEDD), total scores of PDQ-39, and scores of question 9 "degree of concern about falling" in PDQ-39 at 2 years after DBS ([711.84±343.99] mg/d vs. [549.30±301.08] mg/d, 47.00[30.00, 64.00] vs. 13.50[7.75, 27.00], 2.00[0.00, 3.00] vs. 0.00[0.00, 1.75], P<0.05). (3) Compared with that at preoperative medication-off state, the arm swing velocity at postoperative medication-on state statistically increased in PD patients ( P<0.05); compared with those at preoperative medication-off state, the arm swing range and turning speed at postoperative medication-off and medication-on states significantly increased in PD patients ( P<0.05); compared with that at preoperative medication-off state, the turning duration at postoperative medication-off state statistically decreased in PD patients ( P<0.05). Compared with that at preoperative medication-off state, the range of motion of the trunk in the horizontal plane at postoperative medication-off and medication-on states increased significantly in PD patients ( P<0.05); compared with that at preoperative medication-off state, the range of motion in the sagittal plane of the lumbar, coronal plane of the trunk, and sagittal plane of the trunk all increased significantly in PD patients at postoperative medication-on state ( P<0.05); the mean velocity and root mean square acceleration at postoperative medication-on state increased significantly in PD patients compared with that at preoperative medication-off state ( P<0.05); conversely, the swing frequency at postoperative medication-off state decreased significantly in PD patients compared with that at preoperative medication-off state ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Two years after DBS, PD patients exhibit obviously improved gait, with enhanced flexibility, and dynamic and static stability.