Background
The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of epidemiologic and physician‐diagnosed pollen‐induced AR (PiAR) in the grasslands of northern China and to study the impact of the ...intensity and time of pollen exposure on PiAR prevalence.
Methods
A multistage, clustered and proportionately stratified random sampling with a field interviewer‐administered survey study was performed together with skin prick tests (SPT) and measurements of the daily pollen count.
Results
A total of 6043 subjects completed the study, with a proportion of 32.4% epidemiologic AR and 18.5% PiAR. The prevalence was higher in males than females (19.6% vs 17.4%, P = .024), but no difference between the two major residential and ethnic groups (Han and Mongolian) was observed. Subjects from urban areas showed higher prevalence of PiAR than rural areas (23.1% vs 14.0%, P < .001). Most PiAR patients were sensitized to two or more pollens (79.4%) with artemisia, chenopodium, and humulus scandens being the most common pollen types, which were similarly found as the top three sensitizing pollen allergens by SPT. There were significant regional differences in the prevalence of epidemiologic AR (from 18.6% to 52.9%) and PiAR (from 10.5% to 31.4%) among the six areas investigated. PiAR symptoms were positively associated with pollen counts, temperature, and precipitation (P < .05), but negatively with wind speed and pressure P < .05).
Conclusion
Pollen‐induced AR (PiAR) prevalence in the investigated region is extremely high due to high seasonal pollen exposure, which was influenced by local environmental and climate conditions.
With the aim of gathering temporal trends on bacterial epidemiology and resistance from multiple laboratories in China, the CHINET surveillance system was organized in 2005. Antimicrobial ...susceptibility testing was carried out according to a unified protocol using the Kirby-Bauer method or automated systems. Results were analyzed according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) 2014 definitions. Between 2005 and 2014, the number of bacterial isolates ranged between 22 774 and 84 572 annually. Rates of extended-spectrum β-lactamase production among Escherichia coli isolates were stable, between 51.7 and 55.8%. Resistance of E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae to amikacin, ciprofloxacin, piperacillin/tazobactam and cefoperazone/sulbactam decreased with time. Carbapenem resistance among K. pneumoniae isolates increased from 2.4 to 13.4%. Resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains against all of antimicrobial agents tested including imipenem and meropenem decreased with time. On the contrary, resistance of Acinetobacter baumannii strains to carbapenems increased from 31 to 66.7%. A marked decrease of methicillin resistance from 69% in 2005 to 44.6% in 2014 was observed for Staphylococcus aureus. Carbapenem resistance rates in K. pneumoniae and A. baumannii in China are high. Our results indicate the importance of bacterial surveillance studies.
Background and purpose
Previous studies suggested that the overall burden of prior infections contributes to cardiovascular diseases and stroke. In the present study, the association between ...infectious burden (IB) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) was examined.
Methods
Antibody titers to common infectious pathogens including cytomegalovirus (CMV), herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV‐1), Borrelia burgdorferi, Chlamydophila pneumoniae and Helicobacter pylori were measured by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay in 128 AD patients and 135 healthy controls. IB was defined as a composite serological measure of exposure to these common pathogens.
Results
Seropositivities toward zero−two, three and four−five of these pathogens were found in 44%, 40% and 16% of healthy controls but in 20%, 44% and 36% of AD patients, respectively. IB, bacterial burden and viral burden were independently associated with AD after adjusting for age, gender, education, APOE genotype and various comorbidities. Mini‐Mental State Examination scores were negatively correlated with IB in all cases. Serum beta‐amyloid protein (Aβ) levels (i.e. Aβ40, Aβ42 and total Aβ) and inflammatory cytokines (i.e. interferon‐γ, tumor necrosis factor α, interleukin‐1β and interleukin‐6) in individuals exposed to four−five infectious pathogens were significantly higher than those exposed to zero−two or three pathogens.
Conclusions
IB consisting of CMV, HSV‐1, B. burgdorferi, C. pneumoniae and H. pylori is associated with AD. This study supports the role of infection/inflammation in the etiopathogenesis of AD.
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Abstract
As a novel X-ray focusing technology, lobster-eye micropore optics (MPO) feature both a wide observing field of view and true imaging capability, promising sky monitoring with significantly ...improved sensitivity and spatial resolution in soft X-rays. Since first proposed by Angel, the optics have been extensively studied, developed and trialed over the past decades. In this Letter, we report on the first-light results from a flight experiment of the Lobster Eye Imager for Astronomy, a pathfinder of the wide-field X-ray telescope of the Einstein Probe mission. The piggyback imager, launched in 2022 July, has a mostly unvignetted field of view of 18.°6 × 18.°6. Its spatial resolution is in the range of 4′–7′ in FWHM and the focal spot effective area is 2–3 cm
2
, both showing only mild fluctuations across the field of view. We present images of the Galactic center region, Sco X-1, and the diffuse Cygnus Loop nebular taken in snapshot observations over 0.5–4 keV. These are truly wide-field X-ray images of celestial bodies observed, for the first time, by a focusing imaging telescope. Initial analyses of the in-flight data show excellent agreement between the observed images and the on-ground calibration and simulations. The instrument and its characterization are briefly described, as well as the flight experiment. The results provide a solid basis for the development of the present and proposed wide-field X-ray missions using lobster-eye MPO.
Superconductivity emerges in proximity to a nematic phase in most iron-based superconductors. It is therefore important to understand the impact of nematicity on the electronic structure. Orbital ...assignment and tracking across the nematic phase transition prove to be challenging due to the multiband nature of iron-based superconductors and twinning effects. Here, we report a detailed study of the electronic structure of fully detwinned FeSe across the nematic phase transition using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. We clearly observe a nematicity-driven band reconstruction involvingdxz,dyz, anddxyorbitals. The nematic energy scale betweendxzanddyzbands reaches a maximum of 50 meV at the Brillouin zone corner. We are also able to track thedxzelectron pocket across the nematic transition and explain its absence in the nematic state. Our comprehensive data of the electronic structure provide an accurate basis for theoretical models of the superconducting pairing in FeSe.
Superconductivity originates from pairing of electrons near the Fermi energy. The Fermi surface topology and pairing symmetry are thus two pivotal characteristics of a superconductor. ...Superconductivity in one monolayer (1 ML) FeSe thin film has attracted great interest recently due to its intriguing interfacial properties and possibly high superconducting transition temperature over 65 K. Here, we report high-resolution measurements of the Fermi surface and superconducting gaps in 1 ML FeSe using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. Two ellipselike electron pockets are clearly resolved overlapping with each other at the Brillouin zone corner. The superconducting gap is nodeless but moderately anisotropic, which puts strong constraint on determining the pairing symmetry. The gap maxima locate on the d_{xy} bands along the major axis of the ellipse and four gap minima are observed at the intersections of electron pockets. The gap maximum location combined with the Fermi surface geometry deviate from a single d-wave, extended s-wave or s_{±} gap function, suggesting an important role of the multiorbital nature of Fermi surface and orbital-dependent pairing in 1 ML FeSe. The gap minima location may be explained by a sign change on the electron pockets, or a competition between intra- and interorbital pairing.
Three-dimensional topological insulators are a new state of quantum matter with a bulk gap and odd number of relativistic Dirac fermions on the surface. By investigating the surface state of Bi2Te3 ...with angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we demonstrate that the surface state consists of a single nondegenerate Dirac cone. Furthermore, with appropriate hole doping, the Fermi level can be tuned to intersect only the surface states, indicating a full energy gap for the bulk states. Our results establish that Bi2Te3 is a simple model system for the three-dimensional topological insulator with a single Dirac cone on the surface. The large bulk gap of Bi2Te3 also points to promising potential for high-temperature spintronics applications.
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