Age-related changes in resting-state functional connectivity in older adults

Age-related changes in the brain connectivity of healthy older adults have been widely studied in recent years,with some differences in the obtained results.Most of these studies showed decreases in general functional connectivity,but they also found increases in some particular regions and areas.Frequently,these studies compared young individuals with older subjects,but few studies compared different age groups only in older populations.The purpose of this study is to analyze whole-brain functional connectivity in healthy older adult groups and its network characteristics through functional segregation.A total of 114 individuals,48 to 89 years old,were scanned using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging in a resting state paradigm and were divided into six different age groups(<60,60–64,65–69,70–74,75–79,≥80 years old).A partial correlation analysis,a pooled correlation analysis and a study of 3-cycle regions with prominent connectivity were conducted.Our results showed progressive diminution in the functional connectivity among different age groups and this was particularly pronounced between 75 and 79 years old.The oldest group(≥80 years old)showed a slight increase in functional connectivity compared to the other groups.This occurred possibly because of compensatory mechanism in brain functioning.This study provides information on the brain functional characteristics of every age group,with more specific information on the functional progressive decline,and supplies methodological tools to study functional connectivity characteristics.Approval for the study was obtained from the ethics committee of the Comision de Bioetica de la Universidad de Barcelona(approval No.PSI2012-38257)on June 5,2012,and from the ethics committee of the Barcelona’s Hospital Clinic(approval No.2009-5306 and 2011-6604)on October 22,2009 and April 7,2011 respectively.

A Different Opinion on the Geological Age of the Longzhaogou and Jixi Groups of Eastern Heilongjiang, China

The age of the Longzhaogou and Jixi Groups of coal measures in eastern Heilongjiang were previouslyconsidered to be Jurassic or mainly Jurassic. But there occur Middle Barremian-Early Albian Aucellina(bivalvia) fossils in the Upper Yunshan Formation of the Longzhaogou Group and the Lower Chengzihe For-mation of the Jixi Group, and the Qihulin Formation of the Longzhaogou Group yields Early Cretaceousbivalve and ammonite fossils. Consequently, the geological ages of the two groups are mainly, or even all, Ear-ly Cretaceous.

Patterns and driving factors of leaf C,N,and P stoichiometry in two forest types with different stand ages in a mid-subtropical zone

Background:Carbon(C),nitrogen(N),and phosphorus(P)stoichiometry is a key indicator of nutrient utilization in plants,and C/N/P ratios are related to the life histories and adaptation strategies of tree species.However,no consensus has been reached on how leaf stoichiometric characteristics are affected by forest type and stand ages.The relationships between leaf stoichiometry and geographical,meteorological,and soil factors also remain poorly understood.Methods:Leaf and soil were sampled from forest stands of different age groups(young,middle-aged,near-mature,and mature)in two forest types(Chinese fir(Cunninghamia lanceolata)forests and evergreen broadleaved forests).The relationships between leaf C,N,and P stoichiometric parameters and geographical,meteorological,and soil factors were analysed by using redundancy analysis(RDA)and stepwise linear regression analysis.Results:Leaf C concentrations peaked in the near-mature stands with increasing age irrespective of forest type.Leaf N and P concentrations fluctuated with a rising trend in Chinese fir forests,while decreased first and increased later from young to mature phases in natural evergreen broadleaved forests.Chinese fir forests were primarily limited by N and P,while natural evergreen broadleaved forests were more susceptible to P limitation.Leaf C,N,and P stoichiometric characteristics in Chinese fir forests were mainly affected by the soil total P concentration(SP),longitude(LNG),growing season precipitation(GSP)and mean temperature in July(JUT).The leaf C concentration was mainly affected by GSP and JUT;leaf N and P concentrations were both positively correlated with LNG;and leaf P was positively correlated with SP.In evergreen broadleaved forests,however,leaf stoichiometric parameters displayed significant correlations with latitude(LAT)and mean annual precipitation(MAP).Conclusions:Leaf stoichiometry differed among forest stands of different age groups and forest types.Leaf C,N,and P stoichiometry was primarily explained by the combinations of SP,LNG,GSP and JUT in Chinese fir forests.LAT and MAP were the main controlling factors affecting the variations in the leaf C,N,and P status in natural evergreen broadleaved forests,which supports the temperature-plant physiological hypothesis.These findings improve the understanding of the distribution patterns and driving mechanisms of leaf stoichiometry linked with stand age and forest type.

Effect of Age on the Clinicopathological Characteristics and Survival Outcomes of Thymoma Patients

Background: Age is an important prognostic factor for thymoma;however, few studies have specifically focused on age-related survival outcomes in thymoma patients. This study explored the effect of age on the clinicopathological features and survival outcomes of thymoma patients. Methods: We reviewed the clinical data of 1984 chest thymoma patients from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database of the National Cancer Institute. In accordance with the World Health Organization age brackets, the patients were divided into young (group A, 0 - 44-year-old);middle-aged (group B, 45 - 59-year-old);old (group C, 60 - 74-year-old);and seniors (group D 75 - 84-year-old). Single-factor and multivariate analysis were performed using the Kaplan-Meier method, and a multivariate Cox regression model was generated to assess patient prognosis. Results: In total, 1984 patients were included. The median follow-up time was 156.0 months (range: 0 - 492 months). Group C (60 - 74-year-old) had the most patients (35.1%), and Group D had the fewest patients (12.3%). Among all age groups, the proportion of white people and men with thymoma increased with age, while the proportion of black people and women showed a downward trend. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that the overall survival rate of thymoma patients was negatively correlated with age. The overall survival times of the four groups were significantly different (p Conclusion: Age is an important prognostic factor for survival in thymoma patients, and younger patients have a survival advantage over older patients.

Image Findings and Common Musculoskeletal Disorders for Pediatrics in the Saudi Arabian Society

Aim: To detect the most common musculoskeletal disorders and to explore the common injury and indication of different musculoskeletal systems, and then to obtain the causes of disorders by observing clinical indications via images. Methodology: The subjects in this project consisted of both genders—males and females and were investigated randomly by collecting data from the PACS unit that exists in the radiology department at KAUH. The participants had a mean age of 7.4 ± 0.3 years, a mean height of 118.2 ± 2.5 cm, a mean mass of 27.8 ± 1.5 kg, and a mean BMI of 19.6 ± 0.8 kg/m2. The author settled the study plan by building a special, appropriate questionnaire to be handed out to the patients and covered mainly the prospective studies of randomly selected patients who came to the emergency unit and the outpatient units from other departments at KAUH in Jeddah. Results: The ratio of injuries in male children (77%) against females (23%) is 3:1, and this ratio is considered significant between age groups for males when compared with females. The injuries existed most in the age groups of 4 to 6 years old and 8 to 10 years old with approximately the same percentage of the total subjects as about 21% for each age group. Trauma injury was significant (81%) compared to other types of causes in all age groups. There was a significant relationship between the causes of injuries and the age groups in pediatrics (p 0.05) between the site of injuries and age groups. The significant site that resulted from trauma was the knee (100%), out of the total traumas’ subject. There was a highly significant relationship between the site of injuries and its causes (p = 0.006, i.e. p < 0.05) that were expected. Conclusion: More awareness and understanding in the society are needed and we should concentrate on increasing the knowledge of such by providing them with more learning courses.

The Impact of Salivary pH Value and Dental Caries Index on Periodontal Status among Adult Age Groups of Patients from Aseer Region, Saudi Arabia

Background: The patients’ age is considered a modified risk factor that causes periodontal disease, dental caries, and their development. Objective: The present study was designed to evaluate the impact of salivary pH value and dental caries index on periodontal status among adult age groups of patients from Aseer region, Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis carried out in the college of dentistry, King Khalid University on 750 adult patients (400 males and 350 females). The adults patients were divided into three equal groups according to the patients’ age: group I (20 - 30 years), group II (31 - 40 years), and group III (41 - 50 years). Plaque index (PLI), gingival index (GI), clinical attachment loss (CAL), and the dental caries index (DMFT) recorded as well as salivary pH. All findings collected, then analyzed by an ANOVA test and the t-test. A p-value at <0.05 was considered a statistical significance level. Results: The clinical findings of the current study showed that there were statistically significant differences in the patients’ age of both males and females. Moreover, there were statistically significant differences in GI. On the other hand, there were highly statistically significant differences in PLI and DMFS, but there were no significant differences in CAL of both males and females Moreover, there were no statistically significant differences in salivary pH. Conclusion: We concluded that DMFT Index correlated to periodontal and oral health status and, it increased with the progression of the patient’s age and can be used in the epidemiological evaluation of periodontal and oral health status.

The patients’ opinion on the use of information technologies at the Seskine Outpatient Clinic and “Centro poliklinika” Outpatient Clinic of the city of Vilnius according to the age of patients

Objectives: The objective of this study is to assess patients’ opinion of the information technologies (IT) electronic registration systems at the “Centro poliklinika” and Seskine outpatient clinics in Vilnius City. Material and Methods: The survey was conducted in May-June, 2012. In the course of the primary survey, one questionnaire was handed out to one in tenth of the newly arrived patients. Total number of 650 questionnaires was distributed. 563 respondents participated in the survey (feedback rate—86.6%). Statistical analysis of data was performed by means of personal computer using SPSS software package. Results: 54.7% of respondents state that they make use of the possibility of online registration with the family doctor. 85.05% of respondents indicate that a doctor, when making the next appointment or referring to the medical specialist, registers a patient on site by means of computer. Upon arrival of a respondent to the reception desk of the medical establishment, 90.3% of respondents are registered by means of computer. 72.4% of respondents say that they have a choice to telephone and inquire about the time of visit if they have forgotten the visit time or lost the appointment sheet. Majority of respondents using the online registration option belong to the age group between 21 and 40 years—35.3%. Conclusions: Answers by the respondents and the breakdown between “Centro poliklinika” and Seskine outpatient clinics are very similar and no essential differences have been determined.

Ninety-four thousand-case retrospective study on antibacterial drug resistance of Helicobacter pylori

BACKGROUND The resistance rate to antibacterial drugs is the key inhibitor of Helicobacter pylori(H.pylori)eradication treatment.AIM To evaluate the prevalence and drug resistance of H.pylori based on big data.METHODS Gastric mucosal specimens were collected from naive patients undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy for H.pylori culture and antimicrobial susceptibility testing(AST),including clarithromycin,levofloxacin,metronidazole and amoxicillin.Every 10 years of age was grouped as an age group.The H.pylori infection and resistance were explored based on the age group and gender.RESULTS The number of H.pylori-positive specimen was 94509 in 283823 gastric mucosal specimens,with an infection rate of 33.30%.The infection rate increased with age,and males had a higher infection rate than females.The average resistance rate of H.pylori to amoxicillin and metronidazole was 0.21%and 93.72%,which remained stable.The average resistance rate to clarithromycin was 23.99%with an increasing trend from 14.43%to 38.24%.The average resistance rate to levofloxacin was 30.29%,which increased from 17.07%to 39.42%and mostly stabilized after 2017.The resistance rate of H.pylori increased with age,except amoxicillin.H.pylori in females are at higher risk of resistance to metronidazole but not to amoxicillin,regardless of the age group.Meanwhile,H.pylori in females are at higher risk of resistance to levofloxacin and clarithromycin in the 21-50 age group.The single,dual,triple and quadruple-drug resistance rate was 54.59%,29.03%,11.71%and 0.11%,respectively.CONCLUSION The resistance of H.pylori in Taizhou city is serious.Guided by the consensus report,individualized treatment based on AST is recommended.

Effects of rodent-induced disturbance on eco-physiological traits of Haloxylon ammodendron in the Gurbantunggut Desert,Xinjiang,China

Disturbance by rodents alters the morphologies and nutrients of plants as well as the physical-chemical properties of the soils.Changes in plants are considered to be mechanisms of defense against the disturbance by rodents.Rodents gnaw on the assimilating branches of Haloxylon ammodendron(CA Mey.)Bunge and burrow under the bushes in the desert ecosystems of Xinjiang,China.However,eco-physiological responses of different age groups of H.ammodendron to the disturbance by rodents are not well understood.In this study,soil physical-chemical properties under the shrubs and the above-ground morphological,physiological and biochemical features of assimilating branches of H.ammodendron of different age groups(i.e.,young,30−100 cm;middle-aged,100−200 cm;and mature,>200 cm)in burrowed and non-burrowed(control)areas were studied in 2018.We found that disturbance by rodents significantly increased the crown width and total branching rates of young and middle-aged H.ammodendron.Photosynthetic pigment contents of assimilating branches of H.ammodendron were significantly reduced under the disturbance by rodents.In term of plant nutrients,the main differences among different age groups of H.ammodendron under the disturbance by rodents occurred in the total soluble sugar and reducing sugar contents that decreased in young plants,increased in middle-aged plants,and did not affect in mature plants.Crude protein and phosphorus contents significantly increased,while crude fiber and calcium contents significantly decreased in young plants.Crude fat and calcium contents significantly decreased in middle-aged plants.Soil organic matter(SOM),total nitrogen(TN),available nitrogen(AN)and available potassium(AK)contents in the topsoil(0–20 cm),which are conducive to forming''fertile islands'',also increased under the disturbance by rodents.In particular,soil AN and AK were the major factors affecting the above-ground morphological characteristics of H.ammodendron in burrowed areas.Overall,the response and defense strategies of H.ammodendron to the disturbance by rodents differed among different age groups,and the effect of the disturbance by rodents on H.ammodendron gradually weakened with the increasing plant age.

Diet Composition of the Salamander Lyciasalamandra luschani basoglui on the Greek Island of Kastellorizo in the Southeast Aegean Sea

The diet composition of the Lycian salamander Lyciasalamandra luschani basoglui across both age and sex groups was studied. Specimens were collected from a small island in the Southeast Aegean Sea. The dominant prey group of juveniles consisted of Collembola, while Coleoptera dominated the diet of males and females. The number and size of prey items consumed by males and females of L. luschani basoglui were quite similar, while juveniles ate fewer items of much smaller size. The numerical abundance along with the four measures of the size of prey permitted discrimination among males, females and juveniles. Although discrimination between adults and juveniles is expected due to dissimilarity in body size, discrimination between males and females remains inexplicable despite their similarity in body size. Future studies should be focused on understanding how and why prey choice differs between sexes in L. luschani basoglui.

COVID-19 in Children: Experience from a Tertiary Care Hospital in Bangladesh

Background: Children are generally at low risk of infection and data on COVID-19 in children are scarce. This study was undertaken to document data from a tertiary care hospital in Bangladesh on the incidence, presentation and immediate outcome of COVID-19 in children. Methodology: It was a cross-sectional study conducted in the fever clinic and the department of Pediatrics, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) over a period of one year from July 2020 to June 2021. All the RT–PCR positive pediatric cases (1 month to 18 years) were enrolled. Data were collected by a structured, predesigned and pre-tested questionnaire. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel spreadsheet software 2010. Frequency, percentage and chi-square tests were done for statistical analysis. Result: Among 8203 suspected pediatric COVID-19 cases, 850 (10.36%) was RT PCR positive. The highest number of RT-PCR positive COVID-19 cases was found in April 2021. More than 63% of cases were in the age group of 10 to 18 years. Male: female ratio was 0.97:1. Fever was the most common (75.9%) presenting feature followed by breathing difficulty and chest pain in 9.6% and 7% of <span style="font-family: ">patients respectively. Mild infection group was predominant (56.7%). Among the symptomatic cases, 16.7% were hospitalized. Oxygen inhalation and bronchodilators were needed in 75% of hospitalized patients. All the severe and critical cases were managed in the inpatient department and in pediatric PICU when indicated. Most of the patients (99.4%) improved with or without any complication. Four critically ill patients (0.75%) developed multi-organ dysfunction and expired in PICU. Conclusion: <span style="font-family: ">The majority of COVID-19 cases belonged to the older age group. More than 75% cases were symptomatic. History of contact was present in 78% cases. More than 99% children recovered with or without sequelae and 0.8% children with pre-existing co-morbidities expired.

Gestational Diabetes Mellitus and Its Associated Risk Factors in Pregnant Women at Selected Health Facilities in Kigali City, Rwanda

Background: Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is the most common complication of pregnancy that causes chronic hypertension, increased rate of cesarean delivery, fetal mortality and morbidity. Therefore, early diagnosis of GDM is vital to reduce maternal and fetal morbidity. Moreover, it can circumvent or procrastinate the onset of type 2 diabetes. Objectives: The main objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of GDM in pregnant women attending Kimironko, Kicukiro and Muhima Health Centres. The specific objectives were to determine the blood glucose during the second trimester in pregnant women aged between 21 and 45 years, to find out the frequencies of pregnant women presenting with GDM according to age and to assess some promising risk factors associated with GDM. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out at Kimironko, Kicukiro and Muhima Health centers using a sample size of 96 pregnant women. Blood glucose levels were measured using glucose oxidase method with a glucometer. Data were analyzed by using Microsoft Office Excel and SPSS version 20. Results: Out of 96 pregnant women who participated in the study, 8.3% were found to have GDM with the mean ± 2SD of 194.12 ± 25.53 mg/dl of their blood glucose results (Mean ± 2SD: A 95% level of confidence Intervals). The highest proportion of GDM was revealed in pregnant women aged between 26 - 30 years, representing a frequency of 5.2% whereas 2.1% of GDM was reflected in women aged between 21 - 25 years. The lowest proportion of GDM fell in age group of 31 - 35 years contributing to 1% of the total GDM. There were no cases of GDM in pregnant women in the 36 - 40 or 41 - 45 age groups. The mean ± 2SD of participant’s age groups was 27.12 ± 5.01 years. In addition, while obesity did not show to be associated with GDM, age and family history were found to be risk factors of GDM. Conclusion: The findings of this study revealed that the prevalence of GDM was 8.3% and the most affected pregnant women were in the age group of 26 - 30 years.

Repercussion of salinity on hematological parameters and tissue morphology of gill and kidney at early life of tilapia

This study was attempted to reveal the changes in three hematological parameters such as blood hemoglobin,number of white blood cells(WBCs)and number of red blood cells(RBCs)and one biochemical(e.g.,glucose)parameter along with the changes in histomorphological structures of gills and kidney of Nile tilapia fry reared in saline water.Two experimental set up were used for two different age groups-5 days-after-hatch(5DAH)and 15 days-after-hatch(15DAH)-to test a novel hypothesis:if a little difference in the age during the first exposure to saline water could produce any variation in the results.They were placed into 6 plastic drums having six different salinity levels:0,5,10,15,20 and 25.After 60 days,at least 5 individuals were taken out from each drum to observe the above-hematological and histomorphological parameters.A two-way-ANOVA revealed that,except for hemoglobin,all the observed parameters have been affected the effect of age×salinity interaction(P<0.05).Between the two age groups,only the overall average glucose value and RBC count were significantly different.Among various salinity levels,only RBC and WBC counts differed significantly.Further,the mean glucose value,RBC counts and WBC count at different salinities differed significantly from the base mean value of each parameter.With regard to the histomorphological structure of the gills and kidney,various malformations were evident.Though hypertrophy,epithelial uplifting and epithelial necrosis were present as gill degenerations,hyperplasia was prevalent across almost all salinity levels.On the other hand,glomerular necrosis,pyknotic nucleus,hyaline droplets degeneration,shrinking of the glomeruli,etc.were observed in kidney structures.By assisting to understand the effects of salinity stress,all these data on tilapia fry will help to determine the prospects and scope of culturing the species in high-salinity water.

Age-specific effectiveness of primary human papillomavirus screening versus cytology in a cervical cancer screening program: a nationwide cross-sectional study

Background:Primary human papillomavirus(HPV)screening is recommended for the detection of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia(CIN)in the general pop-ulation;however,the triage for HPV-positive women remains a challenge.This study aimed to evaluate the age-specific effectiveness of primary HPV screening versus primary cytology screening for identifying optimal strategies for women of different ages.Methods:The dataset of the prevalence round screening was derived from the National Cervical Cancer Screening Program in China.Primary cervical screen-ing protocols included cytology only,HPV testing with cytology triage,and HPV testing with HPV-16/18 genotyping plus cytology triage.The primary outcomes were age-specific detection rate,colposcopy referral rate and positive predictive value(PPV)for CIN2+.Multivariate Poisson regression was used to evaluate the relativeeffectivenessofHPVtestingandcytologyaccordingtoagegroups.TheI 2 statisticwitharandom-effectmodelwasusedtotesttheheterogeneityinrelative effectiveness of HPV testing versus cytology between age groups.Results:This study included 1,160,981 women.HPV testing with HPV-16/18 genotyping plus cytology triage significantly increased the CIN2+detection by 36%(rate ratio[RR]:1.36,95%confidential interval[CI]1.21–1.54)for women aged 35-44 years and by 34%(RR:1.34,95%CI 1.20-1.51)for women aged 45-54 years compared with cytology only.HPV testing with cytology triage had simi-lar CIN2+detection rate compared with cytology only.The PPVs were substan-tially increased for both HPV testing groups.Among women aged 55-64 years old,HPV testing with HPV-16/18 genotyping plus cytology triage increased the colposcopyreferralrateby19%(RR1.19,95%CI1.10-1.29)comparedwithcytology only,butdidnotincreasetheCIN2+detection(1.09,0.91–1.30).Theeffectiveness ofHPVtestingwithcytologytriagedidnotchangeinolderwomen.Thebetween-age-group heterogeneity in the effectiveness was statistically significant for HPV testing with HPV-16/18 genotyping plus cytology triage versus cytology only.Conclusions:Our results suggested that the effectiveness of primary HPV screeningwithdifferenttriagestrategiesdifferedamongagegroups.HPVtesting with HPV-16/18 genotyping plus cytology triage could be used for women aged 35-54 years to detect more lesions,and HPV testing with cytology triage could balance the CIN2+detection and the number of colposcopies for women aged 55-64 years.Longitudinal data including both prevalence and incidence screen-ing rounds are warranted to assess age-specific triage strategies.

COVID-19 case fatality risk by age and gender in a high testing setting in Latin America: Chile, March-August 2020

Background:Early severity estimates of coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)are critically needed to assess the potential impact of the on going pandemic in differe nt demographic groups.Here we estimate the real-time delayadjusted case fatality rate across nine age groups by gender in Chile,the country with the highest testing rate for COVID-19 in Latin America.Methods:We used a publicly available real-time daily series of age-stratified COVID-19 cases and deaths reported by the Ministry of Health in Chile from the beginning of the epidemic in March through August 31,2020.We used a robust likelihood function and a delay distribution to estimate real-time delay-adjusted case-fatality risk and estimate model parameters using a Monte Carlo Markov Chain in a Bayesian framework.

Adaptively temporal graph convolution model for epidemic prediction of multiple age groups

Introduction:Multivariate time series prediction of infectious diseases is significant to public health,and the deep learning method has attracted increasing attention in this research field.Material and methods:An adaptively temporal graph convolution(ATGCN)model,which leams the contact patterns of multiple age groups in a graph-based approach,was proposed for COVID-19 and influenza prediction.We compared ATGCN with autoregressive models,deep sequence learning models,and experience-based ATGCN models in short-term and long-term prediction tasks.Results:Results showed that the ATGCN model performed better than the autoregressive models and the deep sequence learning models on two datasets in both short-term(12.5%and 10%improvements on RMSE)and longterm(12.4%and 5%improvements on RMSE)prediction tasks.And the RMSE of ATGCN predictions fluctuated least in different age groups of COVID-19(0.029±0.003)and influenza(0.059±0.008).Compared with the Ones-ATGCN model or the Pre-ATGCN model,the ATGCN model was more robust in performance,with RMSE of 0.0293 and 0.06 on two datasets when horizon is one.Discussion:Our research indicates a broad application prospect of deep learning in the field of infectious disease prediction.Transmission characteristics and domain knowledge of infectious diseases should be further applied to the design of deep learning models and feature selection.Conclusion:The ATGCN model addressed the multivariate time series forecasting in a graph-based deep learning approach and achieved robust prediction on the confirmed cases of multiple age groups,indicating its great potentials for exploring the implicit interactions of multivariate variables.

THE ANIMAL BONES FROM A FURTHER GROUP OF EARLY BRONZE AGE PITS AT OSTIANO, S. SALVATORE (Cremona)

The faunal remains from a group of pits excavated at Ostiano, S. Salvatore (Cremona- Northern Italy) are represented by bones of cattle, sheep/goat, pig and hare. Together with the archaeo-botanical and archaeological data, they reveal a well balanced, mixed subsistence strategy, combiningcereal agriculture and stock raising, adapted to the geographical and environmental location of this EarlyBronze Age settlement. I resti faunistici di un altro gruppo di pozzetti del sito del Bronzo antico di Ostiano,S. Salvatore (Cremona). I reperti faunistici di Ostiano, S. Salvatore sono rappresentati da resti di bovini,capra/pecora, maiale e lepre. Unitamente ai reperti archeobotanici ed archeologici, questi docmnentanouna strategia di sussistenza ben bilanciata fra allevamento ed agricoltura che concorda con la localizza-zione geografico-ambientale del sito dell’età del Bronzo antica.

Distribution of rare earth elements in agricultural soil and human body(scalp hair and urine) near smelting and mining areas of Hezhang, China

Rare earth elements （REEs） in recent decade are widely used and lead to the accumulation of REE in the environment and human body. The aim of this study was to evaluate the concentrations of REEs in soil and human body （scalp hair and urine） of peo-ple living in agricultural soil near smelting and mining areas in Hezhang County, China. The results showed that mean concentrations of determined REEs in agricultural soil from smelting areas were higher than background. However, concentration was slightly higher in soil in mining area. In addition, REEs concentrations of hair and urine in smelting areas were higher than those in mining areas.ΣREEs for soil in mining and smelting areas were 177.79 and 277.06 mg/kg, respectively.ΣREEs for hair in mining and smelting were 1.13 and 1.55 mg/kg, respectively, andΣREEs for urine in mining and smelting were 0.58 and 0.59 μg/L, respectively. Results showed that La, Ce and Nd were enriched in soil, hair and urine. Eu in smelting area showed a positive anomaly. In smelting and mining areas, females were more likely than male to expose to REEs. The relationship between REEs concentration and age group showed that hair’s high concentrations of REE existed in 18–40 years age for people from smelting areas and females from mining areas. While high concentrations distributed in the age of 41–65 for males from mining area. However, urine did not present similar distribution for different age group. Compared with hair and urine, soil showed the same distribution of REEs. And according to the Ce/Ce＊ value vs. LaN/YbN ratio showed that hair and soil tended to increase, with the stability of Ce/Ce＊ value. Thus the distri-bution of REEs in soil was closely related with the accumulation in human body. This is a preliminary study which may be suggested to the other research, and this study data may be useful for adding up the data pool on REEs levels in China.

Efficacy of Intragastric Balloons in the Markers of Metabolic Dysfunction-associated Fatty Liver Disease:Results from Meta-analyses

Background and Aims:Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease,now renamed metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease(MAFLD),is common in obese patients.Intragastric balloon(IGB),an obesity management tool with low complication risk,might be used in MAFLD treatment but there is still unexplained heterogeneity in results across studies.Methods:We conducted a systematic search of 152 citations published up to September 2020.Meta-analyses,stratified analyses,and meta-regression were performed to evaluate the efficacy of IGB on homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance(HOMA-IR),alanine aminotransferase(ALT),aspartate aminotransferase(AST),and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase(GGT),and to identify patients most appropriate for IGB therapy.Results:Thirteen observational studies and one randomized controlled trial met the inclusion criteria(624 participants in total).In the overall estimate,IGB therapy significantly improved the serum markers change from baseline to follow-up[HOMA-IR:1.56,95%confidence interval(CI)=1.16–1.95;ALT:11.53 U/L,95%CI=7.10–15.96;AST:6.79 U/L,95%CI=1.69–11.90;GGT:10.54 U/L,95%CI=6.32–14.75].In the stratified analysis,there were trends among participants with advanced age having less change in HOMA-IR(1.07 vs.1.82).The improvement of insulin resistance and liver biochemistries with swallowable IGB therapy was no worse than that with endoscopic IGB.Multivariate meta-regression analyses showed that greater HOMA-IR loss was predicted by younger age(p=0.0107).Furthermore,effectiveness on ALT and GGT was predicted by basal ALT(p=0.0004)and GGT(p=0.0026),respectively.Conclusions:IGB is effective among the serum markers of MAFLD.Younger patients had a greater decrease of HOMA-IR after IGB therapy.

Effectiveness of potential antiviral treatments in COVID-19 transmission control:a modelling study

Background:Novel coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)causes an immense disease burden.Although public health countermeasures effectively controlled the epidemic in China,non-pharmaceutical interventions can neither be maintained indefinitely nor conveniently implemented globally.Vaccination is mainly used to prevent COVID-19,and most current antiviral treatment evaluations focus on clinical efficacy.Therefore,we conducted population-based simulations to assess antiviral treatment effectiveness among different age groups based on its clinical efficacy.