Background
Sarcopenia is an age-related disease, which is characterized by a decline in muscle mass and function. It is one of the most important health issues in the elderly and often leads to a ...high rate and variety of adverse outcomes.
Objectives
To evaluate the screening accuracy of SARC-F for sarcopenia in the elderly.
Design
We conducted a meta-analysis using articles available in 6 databases including PubMed (Medline), Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Controlled Register of Trials (CENTRAL), China Knowledge Resource Integrated Database (CNKI), and Wanfang databases from inception to May 2020. Participants: Adults aged 60 years and older.
Measurements
Sarcopenia was defined by EWGSOP2, EWGSOP, AWGS, FNIH and IWGS. Two authors independently extracted data based on predefined criteria. Where data were available we calculated pooled summary estimates of sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) and their 95% confidence interval (CI) based on different criteria using the hierarchical logistic regression modeling including bivariate modeling and hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristic (HSROC) modeling.
Results
We included 20 studies, with the prevalence of sarcopenia ranging from 6.42% to 21.56%. The number of the literatures using EWGSOP, EWGSOP2, AWGS, IWGS and FNIH as diagnostic criteria was 13, 4, 13, 8, 7, respectively. Bivariate analysis yielded a pooled sensitivity of 32% (95%CI: 19%–47%), 77% (95%CI: 49%–92%), 27% (95%CI: 16%–42%), 39% (95%CI: 27%–52%), 35% (95%CI: 23%–49%) and a pooled specificity of 86% (95%CI:77%–92%), 63% (95%CI: 43%–79%), 91% (95%CI: 85%–95%), 86% (95%CI: 76%–92%), 89% (95%CI: 81%–93%), respectively. The area under the HSROC curve were 0.68 (95%CI: 0.64–0.72), 0.75 (95%CI: 0.71–0.78), 0.73 (95%CI: 0.69–0.77), 0.67 (95%CI: 0.62–0.71), 0.70 (95%CI: 0.65–0.73), respectively.
Conclusions
The screening accuracy of SARC-F was various based on different diagnostic criteria. There were some limitations for SARC-F, however, considering the higher practicability and specificity for screening sarcopenia in practice, SARC-F was still an effective screening tool for sarcopenia in the elderly. And the screening accuracy of SARC-F needs further exploration when EWGSOP2 is applied as diagnostic criteria and geriatric inpatients are the target participants.
We demonstrate herein an integrated, smartphone-app-chip (SPAC) system for on-site quantitation of food toxins, as demonstrated with aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), at parts-per-billion (ppb) level in food ...products. The detection is based on an indirect competitive immunoassay fabricated on a transparent plastic chip with the assistance of a microfluidic channel plate. A 3D-printed optical accessory attached to a smartphone is adapted to align the assay chip and to provide uniform illumination for imaging, with which high-quality images of the assay chip are captured by the smartphone camera and directly processed using a custom-developed Android app. The performance of this smartphone-based detection system was tested using both spiked and moldy corn samples; consistent results with conventional enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits were obtained. The achieved detection limit (3 ± 1 ppb, equivalent to μg/kg) and dynamic response range (0.5–250 ppb) meet the requested testing standards set by authorities in China and North America. We envision that the integrated SPAC system promises to be a simple and accurate method of food toxin quantitation, bringing much benefit for rapid on-site screening.
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IJS, KILJ, NUK, PNG, UL, UM
A new alpha-emitting isotope U-214, produced by the fusion-evaporation reaction W-182(Ar-36,4n) U-214, was identified by employing the gas-filled recoil separator SHANS and the recoil-a correlation ...technique. More precise a-decay properties of even-even nuclei U-216,U-218 were also measured in the reactions of Ar-40, Ca-40 beams with W-180,W-182,W- 184 targets. By combining the experimental data, improved alpha-decay reduced widths delta(2) for the even-even Po-Pu nuclei in the vicinity of the magic neutron number N = 126 are deduced. Their systematic trends are discussed in terms of the N-p N-n scheme in order to study the influence of protonneutron interaction on a decay in this region of nuclei. It is strikingly found that the reduced widths of( 214,216)U are significantly enhanced by a factor of two as compared with the NpNn systematics for the 84 <= Z <= 90 and N < 126 even-even nuclei. The abnormal enhancement is interpreted by the strong monopole interaction between the valence protons and neutrons occupying the pi 1f (7/2) and nu 1f(5/2) spin-orbit partner orbits, which is supported by the large-scale shell model calculation.
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CMK, CTK, FMFMET, IJS, NUK, PNG, UL, UM
Water-soluble cupric oxide nanoparticles are fabricated via a quick-precipitation method and used as peroxidase mimetics for ultrasensitive detection of hydrogen peroxide and glucose. The ...water-soluble CuO nanoparticles show much higher catalytic activity than that of commercial CuO nanoparticles due to their higher affinity to hydrogen peroxide. In addition, the as-prepared CuO nanoparticles are stable over a wide range of pH and temperature. This excellent stability in the form of aqueous colloidal suspensions makes the application of the water-soluble CuO nanoparticles easier in aqueous systems. A colorimetric assay for hydrogen peroxide and glucose has been established based on the catalytic oxidation of phenol coupled with 4-amino-atipyrine by the action of hydrogen peroxide. This analytical platform not only confirms the intrinsic peroxidase-like activity of the water-soluble cupric oxide nanoparticles, but also shows its great potential applications in environmental chemistry, biotechnology and medicine.
In this paper, we present a facile and cost-effective method to obtain superhydrophobic filter paper and demonstrate its application for efficient water/oil separation. By coupling structurally ...distinct organosilane precursors (e.g., octadecyltrichlorosilane and methyltrichlorosilane) to paper fibers under controlled reaction conditions, we have formulated a simple, inexpensive, and efficient protocol to achieve a desirable superhydrophobic and superoleophilic surface on conventional filter paper. The silanized superhydrophobic filter paper showed nanostructured morphology and demonstrated great separation efficiency (up to 99.4%) for water/oil mixtures. The modified filter paper is stable in both aqueous solutions and organic solvents, and can be reused multiple times. The present study shows that our newly developed binary silanization is a promising method of modifying cellulose-based materials for practical applications, in particular the treatment of industrial waste water and ecosystem recovery.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
High pressure electric transport and synchrotron x-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements together with the first-principles calculations are performed on a shandite compound Pd3Pb2Se2 which contains the ...Kagome lattice of the transition metal Pd. A pressure-induced superconducting transition is observed above 25 GPa, for the first time in the shandite compounds, although the crystal structure of the compound seems to be very robust and persists up to the highest pressure in the XRD study (76.3 GPa). The superconducting transition temperature is about 2.2 K and almost does not change with pressure. The carrier density suddenly increases around 20 GPa possibly due to the emergence of two electron pockets at the Γ point. Our work indicates that the superconductivity in Pd3Pb2Se2 is strongly correlated to its electronic structure.
A wide array of sensilla are distributed on insect antennae, and they play a variety of important roles. Rice planthoppers, destructive pests on rice, have a unique antenna sensilla structure called ...the ‘sensory plaque organ’. The spineless (ss) gene encodes a bHLH‐PAS transcription factor and plays a key role in antenna development. In the current study, a 3029 bp full‐length cDNA of the Nilaparvata lugens ss gene (Nlss) was cloned, and it encodes 654 amino acid residues. The highest level of Nlss expression was detected in the thorax of fourth‐instar nymphs. Knockdown of Nlss in nymphs led to a decrease in the number and size of plaque organs. Moreover, the flagella of the treated insects were poorly developed, wilted, and even dropped off from the pedicel. Nlss‐knockdown also resulted in twisted wings in both long‐winged and short‐winged brown planthoppers. Y‐type olfactometer analyses indicated that antenna defects originating from Nlss depletion resulted in less sensitivity to host volatiles. This study represents the first report of the characteristics and functions of Nlss in N. lugens antenna and wing development and illuminates the function of the plaque organ of N. lugens in host volatile perception.
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DOBA, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Rare earth (RE) lanthanum chloride was used to modify carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to obtain rare earth modified carbon nanotubes (RECNTs). The modified CNTs were characterized by Fourier transform ...infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The results show that RE has a significant effect on improving the surface activity of carbon nanotubes. Through the chemical function of RE, the CNTs were successfully grafted with functional groups such as amino groups and carboxyl groups. This method can be used to connect any oxygen- or nitrogen-containing functional groups to the CNTs according to actual needs. Then, the modified CNTs were incorporated into epoxy resin (EP) to prepare composite (REACNTs/EP). The mechanical properties of the composites were tested by Zwick/Roell Z100 and Zwick/Roell Z20 test machine, and the tensile fractural sections were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, and compared to the composites prepared with untreated CNTs (CNTs/EP), acidified carbon nanotubes (ACNTs/EP), acidification and RE synergistic modification of carbon nanotubes (REACNTs/EP). The results show that the ultimate tensile strength and tensile modulus of RECNTs/EP were increased by 33.9%, 73.7%, respectively, compared with pure EP, while the properties of REACNTs/EP were increased by 50.7%, 90.9%, indicating that RE has excellent effect on improving the mechanical properties of carbon nanotube-reinforced composites.
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DOBA, EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ