The effects of zirconia and yttrium oxide addition on microstructure, bulk density, microhardness, flexural strength, and wear resistance of high alumina ceramics (>97 wt% Al2O3, MSA ceramics) ...composed of MgO–SiO2–Al2O3 system have been investigated. The results show that the addition of zirconia makes the mechanical properties and wear properties of ceramics composed of MgO–SiO2–Al2O3–ZrO2 (MSAZ ceramics) system have been greatly improved compared with MSA ceramics. In addition, the ceramics composed of MgO–SiO2–Al2O3–ZrO2–Y2O3 (MSAZY ceramics) system have better mechanical properties and wear properties than MSAZ ceramics. With the contents of zirconia and yttrium oxide increase, the bulk density, microhardness, and flexural strength of MSAZ and MSAZY ceramics increased at first and then decreased. However, the wear rate shows the opposite. When 0.4 wt% ZrO2 and 0.6 wt% Y2O3 were added to the matrix, the wear rate of MSAZY ceramics reached a minimum of 0.042%, and the wear resistance was improved by about 73.8% compared with MSA ceramics with a wear rate of 0.16%. In addition, the optimum additions of zirconia and yttria are 0.4% and 0.6%, respectively.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
This study investigates the association between neighborhood socioeconomic status, measured by the Distressed Communities Index (DCI), and short-term outcomes following colon resection.
Utilizing the ...Maryland State Inpatient Sample database (SID 2018–2020), we determined the association between DCI and post-op outcomes following colon resection including length of stay, readmissions, 30-day in-hospital mortality, and non-routine discharges. Multivariate regression analysis was performed to control for potential confounding factors.
Of the 13,839 patients studied, median age was 63, with 54.3 % female and 64.5 % elective admissions. Laparoscopic surgery was performed in 36.9 % cases, with a median hospital stay of 5 days. Patients in distressed communities faced higher risks of emergency admission (OR: 1.31), prolonged hospitalization (OR: 1.29), non-routine discharges (OR: 1.36), and readmission (OR: 1.33). Black patients had longer stays than White patients (OR: 1.3). Despite adjustments, in-hospital mortality did not significantly differ among neighborhoods.
Our study reveals that patients residing in distressed neighborhoods face a higher risk of prolonged hospitalization, non-routine discharges, and readmission rate after colon resection.
•Patients from distressed neighborhoods have worse postoperative outcomes after colon resection.•The Distressed Communities Index (DCI) is a comprehensive measure of neighborhood socioeconomic status.•The DCI can serve as a preoperative risk assessment tool to optimaze patients' surgical outcome.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Astrocytes extend endfeet that enwrap the vasculature, and disruptions to this association which may occur in disease coincide with breaches in blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity. Here we ...investigate if focal ablation of astrocytes is sufficient to disrupt the BBB in mice. Targeted two-photon chemical apoptotic ablation of astrocytes induced a plasticity response whereby surrounding astrocytes extended processes to cover vascular vacancies. In young animals, replacement processes occur in advance of endfoot retraction, but this is delayed in aged animals. Stimulation of replacement astrocytes results in constriction of pre-capillary arterioles, suggesting that replacement astrocytes are functional. Pharmacological inhibition of pSTAT3, as well as astrocyte specific deletion of pSTAT3, reduces astrocyte replacement post-ablation, without perturbations to BBB integrity. Similar endfoot replacement occurs following astrocyte cell death due to reperfusion in a stroke model. Together, these studies uncover the ability of astrocytes to maintain cerebrovascular coverage via substitution from nearby cells.
Clostridium butyricum (C. butyricum) has the ability to ferment dietary polysaccharides and produce butyric acid, which plays a crucial role in promoting gut homeostasis, including alleviating ...colitis and maintaining gut homeostasis. However, C. butyricum is susceptible to oxygen damage and experiences reduced activity due to various environmental stress, which severely restricts their probiotic effects. In this study, a novel synbiotic preparation for colitis treatment by combining dietary polysaccharides (prebiotic) with C. butyricum (probiotic) was developed using microcapsule embedding technology. Firstly, pectin polysaccharide from waste peel was extracted and modified to obtain low-methoxy pectin (DE = 34%) that could be crosslinked in the presence of Ca2+. Additionally, this extracted pectin could promote the growth of C. butyricum and fermentation to produce butyric acid. Subsequently, C. butyricum and spores (Spo) were encapsulated within pectin gel (Pec) using microfluidic technology, and then dual microcapsules were prepared through chitosan (Chi) coating on their surface (Chi@Pec@Spo). This type of microcapsule exhibited excellent viability maintenance for both C. butyricum vegetative cells and spores under cold/hot treatments and gastrointestinal stress, with a viable cell count of up to 108∼109 CFU/g. Moreover, Chi@Pec@Spo treatment resulted in a remarkable survival rate (100%) and significantly reduced disease activity index (0.78 ± 0.09) in mice with acute colitis, accompanied by an elongated colon length (7.51 ± 0.15 cm). The inhibitory expression of pro-inflammatory factors (IL-6 and TNF-α) further indicated the excellent therapeutic efficacy of Chi@Pec@Spo against mice colitis. Overall, this microcapsule system provides a new approach for the treatment of intestinal diseases using food assembly systems.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
The majority of donations are dedicated to helping human recipients. Building on prior literature that demonstrates the role of downward social comparisons between donors and donation recipients in ...elevating willingness to help those in need, we propose that a maximizing mindset increases such downward social comparisons, which in turn promote donations to human recipients. A set of seven studies, including online and field experiments and a secondary dataset, provides convergent support for the effect of the maximizing mindset (whether measured as an inherent individual difference or activated as a temporary mindset) on donations and the mediating role of downward social comparisons. This research enriches the understanding of donations to human recipients by showing that donations can be enhanced by a maximizing mindset. Our findings offer important insights to donation-raising agencies. Specifically, activating the maximizing mindset among prospective donors—by embedding certain words in donation appeals or encouraging donors to think about their best choices in everyday life—could benefit charities and social-cause platforms in their efforts to raise donations to support the needy.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Abstract
It is common that marketers design and position pretty products more to female consumers than to male consumers, suggesting that they generally believe that females have a stronger ...preference than males for product form over function and apply this belief to their marketing practices. However, this research demonstrates that this belief is often inconsistent with actual preferences. Across seven studies and four follow-up studies, involving both hypothetical and field settings, we demonstrate that both marketers and consumers hold such a belief about gender difference and overpredict females’ preference for form-superior (vs. function-superior) products relative to males. Specifically, people tend to choose form-superior (vs. function-superior) products for female (vs. male) others, but female consumers do not choose form-superior (vs. function-superior) products for themselves more than male consumers do. We further provide convergent evidence for the underlying mechanism and boundary conditions by showing that (1) people’s choices for others and themselves are more in line with the lay belief about gender difference when they hold a stronger belief and (2) people’s choices for distant (vs. close) others are more in line with this lay belief. We further assess the effectiveness of several debiasing interventions and show that this lay belief is quite robust.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
To characterize the epidemiology of suicide and self-harm among adolescents admitted to PICUs during the first 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.
Descriptive analysis of a large, ...multicenter, quality-controlled database (Virtual Pediatric Systems VPS), and of a national public health dataset (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention web-based Wide-ranging ONline Data for Epidemiology Research CDC WONDER).
The 69 PICUs participating in the VPS database that contributed data for the entire the study period, January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2021.
Adolescents older than 12 years to younger than 18 years old admitted to a participating PICU during the study period with a diagnosis involving self-harm or a suicide attempt (VPS sample), or adolescent suicide deaths over the same period (CDC WONDER sample).
None.
We identified 10,239 suicide deaths and 7,692 PICU admissions for self-harm, including 5,414 admissions in the pre-pandemic period (Q1-2016 to Q1-2020) and 2,278 in the pandemic period (Q2-2020 to Q4-2021). Compared with the pre-pandemic period, there was no increase in the median (interquartile range) number of suicide deaths per quarter (429 399-453 vs. 416 390-482) or PICU admissions for self-harm per quarter (315 289-353 vs. 310 286-387) during the pandemic period, respectively. There was an increase in the ratio of self-harm PICU admissions to all-cause PICU admissions per quarter during the pandemic (1.98 1.43-2.12) compared with the pre-pandemic period per quarter (1.59 1.46-1.74). We also observed a significant decrease in all-cause PICU admissions per quarter early in the pandemic compared with the pre-pandemic period (16,026 13,721-16,297 vs. 19,607 18,371-20,581).
The number of suicide deaths and PICU admissions per quarter for self-harm remained relatively constant during the pandemic, while the number of all-cause PICU admissions per quarter decreased compared with the pre-pandemic period. The resultant higher ratio of self-harm admissions to all-cause PICU admissions may have contributed to the perception that more adolescents required critical care for mental health-related conditions early in the pandemic.
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