Objective:Hearing loss can seriously affect mental health status, and this study aims to investigate the influence of hearing health status on depressive symptoms among middle-aged and older individuals in the community.Methods:From June to December 2023, a stratified random sampling method was employed to select 1 238 community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly people aged 45 years and above from four cities (Hangzhou, Shanghai, Baoding, and Zhengzhou) as research subjects. A questionnaire survey was conducted to collect the subjects′ basic information, hearing health status [assessed by the Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults-Screening Version (HHIA-S)], and depressive symptoms [assessed by the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 (GDS-15)]. T-tests, rank-sum tests and chi-square tests were used for univariate analysis, while, multiple linear regression and binary Logistic regression were applied to analyze the relationship between hearing health status and depressive symptoms.Results:A total of 1 183 community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly people aged 45 years and above were included in the final analysis (464 males and 719 females, aged from 45 to 96 years). The detection rate of hearing loss was 35.3%(418/1 183), while, the detection rate of depressive symptoms was 9.89%(117/1 183). Age, level of interaction with children, self-rated health, perceived loneliness, and hearing health significantly influenced depressive symptoms among older adults residing in the community ( P<0.05). Individuals with moderate to severe hearing loss ( β=2.04, 95% CI: 1.47, 2.62) exhibited higher GDS-15 scores compared to those without hearing impairment. Furthermore, after correcting for sex, age, marital status, monthly per capita family income, education, residence, smoking status, alcohol use, use of psychotropic medication (anxiolytic or depressant), number of illness, self-health assessment, and autonomy, middle-aged and older adults with mild to moderate hearing loss ( OR=2.89, 95% CI: 1.76, 4.88) and severe hearing loss ( OR=5.79, 95% CI: 3.05, 11.01) demonstrated an increased likelihood of experiencing depression. Conclusions:The degree of hearing loss in community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly individuals is closely associated with the risk of depressive symptoms. Therefore, it is imperative to enhance hearing health screening and to provide mental health support to individuals with hearing loss, in order to mitigate the onset and progression of depressive symptoms.

Objective:To assess cognitive impairment in children with obstructive sleep-disordered breathing (OSDB) using event-related potentials (ERPs).Methods:This case-control study analyzed data from 143 OSDB children[94 males, 49 females, aged 9.0(7.0-11.0) years] scheduled for adenotonsillectomy at the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, Tsinghua University, between June 2023 and September 2024, along with 17 healthy controls [control group: 10 males, 7 females, aged 10.0 (7.5-12.0) years]. Based on polysomnography results, OSDB children were divided into a mild group [obstructive apnea-hypopnea index (OAHI)≤5 events/hour, 49 males, 29 females, aged 9.0 (7.0-10.0) years] and a moderate-to-severe group [OAHI>5 events/hour, 45 males, 20 females, aged 9.0 (8.0-10.0) years]. All children completed a face perception integration task. The occipital P100 and parietal, central and frontal P300 components of incomplete face stimuli (S1) and complete face stimuli (S2) were recorded. Amplitude and latency differences across groups were analyzed. Intergroup comparisons were performed using ANOVA, while independent samples t-tests were used for pairwise comparisons. Non-normally distributed data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test. Results:(1) P100: Both the mild group [occipital P100 amplitude: O1-S1(12.44±5.96) μV, O2-S1(14.19±6.39) μV, O2-S2(30.34±11.30) μV] and moderate-to-severe group [O1-S1 (12.12±5.58) μV, O2-S1 (14.08±5.48) μV, O2-S2(29.12±10.89) μV] showed significantly higher amplitudes than the control group [O1-S1(8.46±4.74) μV,O2-S1(9.68±3.70) μV,O2-S2(23.09±9.16) μV] ( F=3.501, 4.486, 3.072; all P<0.05). No significant differences were found between the two OSDB subgroups ( P>0.05), suggesting compensatory neuronal hyperactivity maintaining normal perceptual function. The moderate-to-severe group exhibited significantly prolonged P100 latency [O2-S1 (134.52±13.42) ms] compared to controls [O2-S1 (125.18±15.31) ms] ( F=3.156 , P<0.05), while no significant difference was observed between the mild group and either the control or moderate-to-severe groups ( P>0.05), indicating delayed visual processing in severely affected children. (2) P300: The mild group exhibited significantly higher P300 amplitudes in parietal regions [P4-S1(8.22±4.32) μV, P4-S2(17.67±9.42) μV] compared to controls [P4-S1 (4.84±2.89) μV, P4-S2 (13.19±7.23) μV] ( F=7.19, 4.771; both P<0.05), whereas no significant differences were observed between the moderate-to-severe group and either the control or mild groups ( P>0.05), indicating mild group reduced alertness. The latency of P300 in the central region showed an increase in the mild group, although not significantly ( P>0.05), indicating a potential decrease in attentional response speed. However, the moderate-to-severe group demonstrated significantly shorter P300 latencies [CZ-S1(394.18±89.12) ms] compared to the mild group [CZ-S1 (433.33±100.33) ms] ( F=3.145, P<0.05), possibly reflecting compensatory enhancement of attentional engagement in more severe cases. Conclusion:Children with OSDB exhibit impairments in primary visual processing and attentional regulation, as evidenced by altered ERP components such as P100 and P300. These findings suggest that OSDB may affect neural mechanisms underlying sensory integration and executive functioning.

Objective:Hearing loss can seriously affect mental health status, and this study aims to investigate the influence of hearing health status on depressive symptoms among middle-aged and older individuals in the community.Methods:From June to December 2023, a stratified random sampling method was employed to select 1 238 community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly people aged 45 years and above from four cities (Hangzhou, Shanghai, Baoding, and Zhengzhou) as research subjects. A questionnaire survey was conducted to collect the subjects′ basic information, hearing health status [assessed by the Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults-Screening Version (HHIA-S)], and depressive symptoms [assessed by the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 (GDS-15)]. T-tests, rank-sum tests and chi-square tests were used for univariate analysis, while, multiple linear regression and binary Logistic regression were applied to analyze the relationship between hearing health status and depressive symptoms.Results:A total of 1 183 community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly people aged 45 years and above were included in the final analysis (464 males and 719 females, aged from 45 to 96 years). The detection rate of hearing loss was 35.3%(418/1 183), while, the detection rate of depressive symptoms was 9.89%(117/1 183). Age, level of interaction with children, self-rated health, perceived loneliness, and hearing health significantly influenced depressive symptoms among older adults residing in the community ( P<0.05). Individuals with moderate to severe hearing loss ( β=2.04, 95% CI: 1.47, 2.62) exhibited higher GDS-15 scores compared to those without hearing impairment. Furthermore, after correcting for sex, age, marital status, monthly per capita family income, education, residence, smoking status, alcohol use, use of psychotropic medication (anxiolytic or depressant), number of illness, self-health assessment, and autonomy, middle-aged and older adults with mild to moderate hearing loss ( OR=2.89, 95% CI: 1.76, 4.88) and severe hearing loss ( OR=5.79, 95% CI: 3.05, 11.01) demonstrated an increased likelihood of experiencing depression. Conclusions:The degree of hearing loss in community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly individuals is closely associated with the risk of depressive symptoms. Therefore, it is imperative to enhance hearing health screening and to provide mental health support to individuals with hearing loss, in order to mitigate the onset and progression of depressive symptoms.

Objective:To assess cognitive impairment in children with obstructive sleep-disordered breathing (OSDB) using event-related potentials (ERPs).Methods:This case-control study analyzed data from 143 OSDB children[94 males, 49 females, aged 9.0(7.0-11.0) years] scheduled for adenotonsillectomy at the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, Tsinghua University, between June 2023 and September 2024, along with 17 healthy controls [control group: 10 males, 7 females, aged 10.0 (7.5-12.0) years]. Based on polysomnography results, OSDB children were divided into a mild group [obstructive apnea-hypopnea index (OAHI)≤5 events/hour, 49 males, 29 females, aged 9.0 (7.0-10.0) years] and a moderate-to-severe group [OAHI>5 events/hour, 45 males, 20 females, aged 9.0 (8.0-10.0) years]. All children completed a face perception integration task. The occipital P100 and parietal, central and frontal P300 components of incomplete face stimuli (S1) and complete face stimuli (S2) were recorded. Amplitude and latency differences across groups were analyzed. Intergroup comparisons were performed using ANOVA, while independent samples t-tests were used for pairwise comparisons. Non-normally distributed data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test. Results:(1) P100: Both the mild group [occipital P100 amplitude: O1-S1(12.44±5.96) μV, O2-S1(14.19±6.39) μV, O2-S2(30.34±11.30) μV] and moderate-to-severe group [O1-S1 (12.12±5.58) μV, O2-S1 (14.08±5.48) μV, O2-S2(29.12±10.89) μV] showed significantly higher amplitudes than the control group [O1-S1(8.46±4.74) μV,O2-S1(9.68±3.70) μV,O2-S2(23.09±9.16) μV] ( F=3.501, 4.486, 3.072; all P<0.05). No significant differences were found between the two OSDB subgroups ( P>0.05), suggesting compensatory neuronal hyperactivity maintaining normal perceptual function. The moderate-to-severe group exhibited significantly prolonged P100 latency [O2-S1 (134.52±13.42) ms] compared to controls [O2-S1 (125.18±15.31) ms] ( F=3.156 , P<0.05), while no significant difference was observed between the mild group and either the control or moderate-to-severe groups ( P>0.05), indicating delayed visual processing in severely affected children. (2) P300: The mild group exhibited significantly higher P300 amplitudes in parietal regions [P4-S1(8.22±4.32) μV, P4-S2(17.67±9.42) μV] compared to controls [P4-S1 (4.84±2.89) μV, P4-S2 (13.19±7.23) μV] ( F=7.19, 4.771; both P<0.05), whereas no significant differences were observed between the moderate-to-severe group and either the control or mild groups ( P>0.05), indicating mild group reduced alertness. The latency of P300 in the central region showed an increase in the mild group, although not significantly ( P>0.05), indicating a potential decrease in attentional response speed. However, the moderate-to-severe group demonstrated significantly shorter P300 latencies [CZ-S1(394.18±89.12) ms] compared to the mild group [CZ-S1 (433.33±100.33) ms] ( F=3.145, P<0.05), possibly reflecting compensatory enhancement of attentional engagement in more severe cases. Conclusion:Children with OSDB exhibit impairments in primary visual processing and attentional regulation, as evidenced by altered ERP components such as P100 and P300. These findings suggest that OSDB may affect neural mechanisms underlying sensory integration and executive functioning.

Objective:To investigate and analyze the employment status of college graduates majoring in health service and management in China.Methods:From April 2023 to June 2024, a cross-sectional survey was conducted on undergraduate graduates majoring in health service and management from 34 universities in China using convenient sampling method. General information was collected (such as gender, household registration at graduation, only child status, average monthly family income, previous experience as a student cadre, average grade point, part-time job experience, entrepreneurial experience, whether a first batch graduate of the university and the major, self-assessment of professional competence level) alongside employment status. Statistical descriptive analysis was employed to analyze the graduates′ basic employment situation, job competence and professional skill demand, types of certificates valued by employers, factors influencing job selection, evaluation of work and profession, and perceptions of professional employment prospects. A total of 1 417 questionnaires were collected in this study, with 1 315 valid responses (92.8%). Chi-square tests were used to compare employment differences among various factors, and binary logistic regression was used to analyze factors influencing employment outcomes.Results:Among 564 employed graduates in the Health Services and Management field, 98 (17.4%) work in health management companies and 97 (17.2%) in hospitals. Regarding important job competencies, 413 (73.2%), 409 (72.5%), and 364 (64.5%) respectively emphasized the importance of information collection and statistical analysis, organizational coordination, and communication skills. Key professional skills highly valued by employers included health risk assessment 175 (66.3%), health measurement 160 (60.6%), and health education and promotion 152 (57.6%). Additionally, 281 (49.8%) highlighted the importance of Health Management Professional Qualification Certificates. Factors influencing job choices included salary and benefits 454 (80.5%) and personal interests and hobbies 279 (49.5%). While 397 (70.4%) of the graduates provided positive feedback on their profession, only 274 (48.6%) were optimistic about their future job prospects. Binary logistic regression analysis indicated significant correlations (all P<0.05) between employment outcomes and factors such as part-time work experience ( OR=1.31) and average grade point ( OR=0.61, 0.68). Conclusions:The employment rate of undergraduate graduates majoring in health service and management in China is low in the health service market, with a low degree of job specialization matching. Graduates are not optimistic about the future employment prospects in their field, possibly due to unclear positioning in talent cultivation in universities and an imperfect job market.

Lung cancer ranks the top of malignancies that cause cancer-related deaths worldwide.The leaves of Morus alba L are traditional Chinese medicine widely applied in respiratory diseases.Our previous work has demonstrated the anti-lung cancer effect of secondary metabolites of mulberry leaf,but their mechanism of action has still not fully elucidated.We synthesized Moracin N(MAN)-Probe conjugated with alkyne to label lung cancer cells and identified protein targets by chemical proteomic analysis.MAN and its probe exerted similar growth-inhibitory effect on human lung cancer cells.Chemical proteomic results showed that MAN targeted the programmed death ligand 1(PD-L1)checkpoint pathway and T cell receptor(TCR)signaling pathway,indicating its immune-regulatory function.Cell-free surface plasmon resonance(SPR)results showed the direct interaction of MAN with PD-L1 protein.Molecular docking analysis demonstrated that MAN bound to E158 residue of PD-L1 protein.MAN downregulated the expression levels of PD-L1 in a time-and dose-dependent manner and disrupted the PD-L1/programmed death 1(PD-1)binding,including other secondary metabolites of mulberry leaves Guangsangon E(GSE)and Chalcomoracin(CMR).Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells(PBMCs)co-cultured with MAN-treated A549 cells,resulting in the increase of CD8+GZMB+T cells and the decrease of CD8+PD-1+T cells.It suggested that MAN exerts anti-cancer effect through blocking the PD-L1/PD-1 signaling.In vivo,MAN combined with anti-PD-1 antibody significantly inhibited lung cancer development and metastasis,indicating their synergistic effect.Taken together,secondary metabolites of mulberry leaves target the PD-L1/PD-1 signaling,enhance T cell-mediated immunity and inhibit the tumorigenesis of lung cancer.Their modulatory effect on tumor microenvironment makes them able to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors in lung cancer.

COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection severely threatens global health and economic development. No effective antiviral drug is currently available to treat COVID-19 and any other human coronavirus infections. We report herein that a macrolide antibiotic, carrimycin, potently inhibited the cytopathic effects (CPE) and reduced the levels of viral protein and RNA in multiple cell types infected by human coronavirus 229E, OC43, and SARS-CoV-2. Time-of-addition and pseudotype virus infection studies indicated that carrimycin inhibited one or multiple post-entry replication events of human coronavirus infection. In support of this notion, metabolic labelling studies showed that carrimycin significantly inhibited the synthesis of viral RNA. Our studies thus strongly suggest that carrimycin is an antiviral agent against a broad-spectrum of human coronaviruses and its therapeutic efficacy to COVID-19 is currently under clinical investigation.

Objective:To study the respiratory morbidity and the risk factors of respiratory complications in late-preterm infants.Methods:The data of 959 late-preterm infants in 21 hospitals in Beijing from October 2015 to April 2016 were collected.These infants were divided into the respiratory morbidity group (237 cases) and the control group (722 cases) according to whether they had short-term respiratory morbidity after birth.Clinical data of the two groups were compared.Results:Among the 959 late-preterm babies, 530 were male and 429 were female.Two hundred and thirty-seven cases (24.7%) developed short-term respiratory morbidity after birth.Infectious pneumonia developed in the most cases (81 cases, 8.4%), followed by transient tachypnea (65 cases, 6.8%), amniotic fluid aspiration (51 cases, 5.3%), and respiratory distress syndrome (24 cases, 2.5%) successively.All the infants recovered and discharged.There were no differences between gender and maternal age between 2 groups (all P>0.05). Compared with the control group, more late-preterm infants were delivered by cesarean section (73.4% vs.59.7%, χ2=14.43, P<0.001) and the 1-minute Apgar score was lower [(9.41±1.66) scores vs.(9.83±0.53) scores, t=5.40, P<0.001] in the respiratory morbidity group.The differences were statistically significant.There were more cases with maternal complications in the respiratory morbidity group that in the control group (66.7% vs.58.6%, χ2=4.877, P=0.027), but no difference in various complications between 2 groups was observed ( P>0.05). In the respiratory morbidity group, the most frequent complications were maternal hypertension and preeclampsia (27.8% vs.22.6%, χ2=2.728, P=0.099). There were no differences between 2 groups in gestational age, birth weight and birth length (all P>0.05). There were more infants small for gestational age and large for gestational age in the respiratory morbidity group than in the control group (18.8% vs.14.1%, 6.3% vs.2.4%, χ2=8.960, P=0.011). The duration of hospitalization of the respiratory morbidity group was significantly longer than that of the control group [(9.00±4.42) d vs.(6.82±4.19) d, t=6.676, P<0.001] since the infants with respiratory morbidity needed to be hospita-lized. Conclusions:Respiratory diseases occur in about 1/4 of late-preterm infants.Infants who are delivered by cesarean section and whose mothers are complicated with the maternal hypertension and preeclampsia should be monitored closely.Respiratory support should be provided for infants not appropriate for gestational age who are more likely to suffer from respiratory diseases, so that they can successfully pass through the transition period.

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is one of the most abundant modifications on mRNAs and plays important roles in various biological processes. The formation of m6A is catalyzed by a methyltransferase complex (MTC) containing a key factor methyltransferase-like 3 (Mettl3). How-ever, the functions of Mettl3 and m6A modification in hepatic lipid and glucose metabolism remain unclear. Here, we showed that both Mettl3 expression and m6A level increased in the livers of mice with high fat diet (HFD)-induced metabolic disorders. Overexpression of Mettl3 aggravated HFD-induced liver metabolic disorders and insulin resistance. In contrast, hepatocyte-specific knockout of Mettl3 significantly alleviated HFD-induced metabolic disorders by slowing weight gain, reducing lipid accumulation, and improving insulin sensitivity. Mechanistically, Mettl3 depletion-mediated m6A loss caused extended RNA half-lives of metabolism-related genes, which consequently pro-tected mice against HFD-induced metabolic syndrome. Our findings reveal a critical role of Mettl3-mediated m6A in HFD-induced metabolic disorders and hepatogenous diabetes.

Objective:To quantitatively evaluate the relationship between sleep duration and metabolic syndrome in adults in order to set up programs on prevention and treatment of metabolic syndrome in this population.Methods:Relevant studies were identified by systematically searching databases before October 2019. All statistical analyses were under the use of Stata 11.0.Results:A total of 656 319 participants including 150 638 cases with metabolic syndrome were involved in thes 38 articles. A U-shaped relationship between sleep duration and metabolic syndrome was noticed. For short and long sleep duration, the OR=1.11 (95% CI: 1.07-1.16) and 1.10 (95% CI: 1.03-1.18), respectively. Subgroup analyses on cross-sectional studies revealed that factors as men, aged under 60 years, being Asians or Caucasians would increase the risk of metabolic syndrome by 6%, 14%, 9%, and 24%, respectively for those with short sleep duration. Factors as aged 60 years and above, being black and with long sleep duration, would increase the risks of metabolic syndrome by 13% and 19%, respectively in women. In subgroup analyses on cohort studies, positive correlation between short sleep duration and metabolic syndrome was observed in both Asian ( RR=1.10, 95% CI: 1.07-1.13) and in Caucasians ( RR=1.56, 95% CI: 1.08-2.26) populations. Conclusions:Results of this study revealed an association between metabolic syndrome and the duration of sleep. We understand that sleep is a behavior that can be changed step by step, through adequate intervention programs, to reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome which has become an important public health issue.