Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a new definition for the evidence of hepatic steatosis and metabolic dysfunctions. The specific role of the dietary factors in the ...development and progress of the disease are not well illuminated. Thus, we conducted this study on the associations between dietary quality assessed by five dietary quality indexes (Dietary Inflammatory Index, DII; Mediterranean diet, MED; Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension, DASH; Alternate Healthy Eating Index diet, AHEI; Healthy Eating Indices, HEI) and MAFLD phenotypes. This study was extracted from the latest NHANES 2017–2018 wave. Demographic information, health status, lifestyles, and dietary habits were reported in the questionnaire. Multivariate logistic regression and multivariate ordinal logistic regression methods were applied to explore the associations between dietary quality indexes and MAFLD or MAFLD with liver fibrosis. The weighted prevalence of Non-MAFLD, MAFLD without fibrosis, and MAFLD with fibrosis were 47.05%, 36.67%, and 16.28%, respectively, at the cutoff value of a median Controlled Attenuation Parameter (CAP) 248 dB/m and a median Liver Stiffness Measurement (LSM) 6.3 kPa. When the diagnostic cutoff values of CAP changed to 285 dB/m, the weighted prevalence of Non-MAFLD, MAFLD without liver fibrosis, and MAFLD with fibrosis turned to 64.62%, 22.08%, and 13.30%, respectively. All five dietary quality indexes, including DII, HEI-2015, AHEI, DASH, and MED, were all significantly associated with MAFLD phenotypes. DII was positively associated with MAFLD phenotypes, while other four dietary quality indexes, including HEI-2015, AHEI, DASH, and MED, were significantly associated with lower risk of MAFLD phenotypes. MAFLD is becoming a threatening public health concern among adult Americans and dietary quality is markedly associated with MAFLD phenotypes.
Environments in both biotic and abiotic ecosystems have been affected by the colonization of non-native flora. In this study, we examined the effect of Bidens alba invasion on different land-use ...types along a coastline in southern China. Bacterial communities in each site were determined using 16S rDNA sequencing, and soil physicochemical properties were analyzed using standard methods. Although our results indicated that B. alba invasion did not have a significant effect on the alpha diversity of bacteria, it caused significant differences in soil bacterial community composition between invaded and uninvaded soil across different land-use types. Beta diversity and several physicochemical properties in forest, orchard and waterfront environments were recorded to be more susceptible to B. alba invasion. A high proportion of the variation of bacterial communities can be explained by a combination of environmental variables, indicating that environmental selection rather than plant invasion is a more effective process in coastal microbial assemblages. By comparing topological roles of shared OTUs among invaded and uninvaded soil, keystone taxa in invaded soil were identified. Acidobacteria was the major phyla involved in the invasive process which could be driven by environmental selection. How key phyla react in our experiment should be verified by further studies.
Vitamin A, a fat-soluble essential vitamin, is implicated in a large range of physiological processes. Up to now, the associations between vitamin A and metabolic syndrome (MetS) or other metabolic ...risk factors are controversial in children and adolescents. Thus, we aimed to dig into the relationship of vitamin A with MetS and many other metabolic risk factors. This was a cross-sectional study derived from the China National Nutrition and Health Surveillance of Children and Lactating Mothers. A total of 3025 school-aged (7-17 years) children and adolescents were selected by applying multistage stratified cluster random sampling methods in the Jiangsu Province of eastern China. Through enquiry survey, anthropometric measurement and laboratory examination, relevant information and blood biochemical indexes of the participants were collected in this study. MetS was identified according to the modified criteria of the National Cholesterol Education Program-Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III). Multivariate logistic analysis and the generalized additive model (GAM) were used to analyze the relationship between vitamin A and various metabolic risk factors. The overweight, obesity and MetS prevalence of children and adolescents in this study was 14.0%, 11.9% and 5.1%, respectively. The risk of prevalent MetS, general obesity, high low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high total cholesterol (TC) and hyperuricemia increased with vitamin A in a dose-dependent way. Logistic regression analysis showed that serum vitamin A Z scores were positively associated with MetS and central obesity, elevated blood pressure (BP) and elevated triglyceride (TG). Sex stratification analysis showed that both in male and female participants, the risk of prevalent MetS, general obesity, high LDL, high TC and hyperuricemia still increased with vitamin A levels. MetS was at a high prevalence level in children and adolescents in Jiangsu that were 7-17 years old. Vitamin A was positively associated with obesity, MetS, dyslipidemia and hyperuricemia. More public health measures and new visions should focus on the effects of retinol on children and adolescents.
We aimed to identify multiple nutritional health problems and the relevant factors among children and adolescents aged 7-17 years. This study was part of the China Nutrition and Health Surveillance ...of Children and Lactating Mothers in 2016-2017, conducted in Jiangsu Province in eastern China. After sampling, 3025 school-age children and adolescents were enrolled into this study. Demographic information collections and anthropometric measurements were conducted by trained local Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) staff. Venous blood in the amount of 6 mL was drawn from each participant in the morning and used for testing biochemical and nutritional indicators. Multivariate logistic regression analysis and Poisson regression analysis were used for overnutrition- and undernutrition-related disorders to test relevant personal, parental, and household factors. The prevalence of wasting, overweight, and obesity was 5.5%, 14.8%, and 12.7%, respectively. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) was prevalent among 5.1% of participants. Among the study participants, 29.5% had hyperuricemia. The overall prevalence of high low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high total cholesterol (TC) of all participants was 4.8% and 7.4%, respectively. 0.9% of the participants had vitamin A deficiency (VAD) and 14.6% had marginal vitamin A deficiency; 25.1% had vitamin D deficiency (VDD) and 54.5% had inadequate vitamin D levels. Anemia was present in 4.0% of all participants. The prevalence of zinc deficiency was 4.8%. Demographic characteristics, behavioral characteristics, parents' characteristics, and family characteristics were associated with these multiple malnutrition disorders. The double burdens of malnutrition, which includes overnutrition- and undernutrition-related diseases, were prevalent among the school-age children and adolescents in Jiangsu Province in eastern China. There were various factors related to different nutritional problems. Thus, health education focusing on behavior intervention and nutrition education are necessary in containing nutritional problems among children.
Identifying patterns and drivers of plant community assembly has long been a central issue in ecology. Many studies have explored the above questions using a trait‐based approach; however, there are ...still unknowns around how patterns of plant functional traits vary with environmental gradients. In this study, the responses of individual and multivariate trait dispersions of 134 species to soil resource availability were examined based on correlational analysis and torus‐translation tests across four spatial scales in a subtropical forest, China. Results indicated that different degrees of soil resource availability had different effects on trait dispersions. Specifically, limited resource (available phosphorus) showed negative relationships with trait dispersions, non‐limited resource (available potassium) showed positive relationships with trait dispersions, and saturated resource (available nitrogen) had no effect on trait dispersions. Moreover, compared with the stem (wood density) and architectural trait (maximum height), we found that leaf functional traits can well reflect the response of plants to nutrient gradients. Lastly, the spatial scale only affected the magnitude but not the direction of the correlations between trait dispersions and environmental gradients. Overall, the results highlight the importance of soil resource availability and spatial scale in understanding how plant functional traits respond to environmental gradients.
In this study, the responses of individual and multivariate trait dispersions of 134 species in Dinghushan plot, China, to soil resource availability were examined. Results showed that different degrees of soil resource availability had different effects on trait dispersions. Specifically, limited resource mainly showed negative relationships with trait dispersions, non‐limited resource mainly showed positive relationships with trait dispersions, and saturated resource had no effect on trait dispersions.
Community assembly in natural communities is commonly explained by stochastic and niche-based processes such as environmental filtering and biotic interactions. Many studies have inferred the ...importance of these processes using a trait-based approach, however, there are still unknowns around what factors affect the importance of different assembly processes in natural communities. In this study, the trait dispersion patterns of 134 species were examined across different functional traits, habitat types, ontogenetic stages and spatial scales from a 20-ha Dinghushan Forest Dynamic Plot in China. The results showed that (1) functional traits related to productivity such as specific leaf area and leaf area mainly showed functional clustering, indicating these two functional traits were more affected by environmental filtering. However, trait dispersion patterns depended on more than the ecological significances of functional traits. For example, trait dispersions of leaf dry matter content, leaf thickness and maximum height did not show consistent patterns across habitat types and ontogenetic stages, suggesting more complex mechanisms may operate on these traits; (2) the trait dispersion varied with the habitat types and ontogenetic stages. Specifically, we found that habitat types only affected the strength of trait dispersions for all the five traits, but ontogenetic stages influenced both the strength and direction of trait dispersions, which depended on the traits selected; (3) the relative importance of soil, topography and space to trait dispersion varied with ontogenetic stages. Topography and space were more important for trait dispersion of saplings but soil was more important for trait dispersion of adults; (4) biotic interactions dominated community assembly at smaller spatial scales but environmental filtering dominated community assembly at larger spatial scales. Overall, the results highlight the importance of functional traits, habitat types, ontogenetic stages and spatial scales to community assembly in natural communities.
Matching soil grid unit resolutions with polygon unit map scales is important to minimize the uncertainty of regional soil organic carbon（SOC） pool simulation due to their strong influences on the ...modeling.A series of soil grid units at varying cell sizes was derived from soil polygon units at six map scales,namely,1：50 000（C5）,1：200 000（D2）,1：500 000（P5）,1：1 000 000（N1）,1：4 000 000（N4） and 1：14 000 000（N14）,in the Taihu Region of China.Both soil unit formats were used for regional SOC pool simulation with a De Nitrification-DeC omposition（DNDC） process-based model,which spans the time period from 1982 to 2000 at the six map scales.Four indices,namely,soil type number（STN）,area（AREA）,average SOC density（ASOCD） and total SOC stocks（SOCS） of surface paddy soils that were simulated by the DNDC,were distinguished from all these soil polygon and grid units.Subjecting to the four index values（IV） from the parent polygon units,the variations in an index value（VIV,%） from the grid units were used to assess its dataset accuracy and redundancy,which reflects the uncertainty in the simulation of SOC pools.Optimal soil grid unit resolutions were generated and suggested for the DNDC simulation of regional SOC pools,matching their respective soil polygon unit map scales.With these optimal raster resolutions,the soil grid units datasets can have the same accuracy as their parent polygon units datasets without any redundancy,when VIV 〈 1% was assumed to be a criterion for all four indices.A quadratic curve regression model,namely,y = – 0.80 × 10~（–6）x~2 ＋ 0.0228 x ＋ 0.0211（R~2 = 0.9994,P 〈 0.05）,and a power function model R？ = 10.394？~（0.2153）（R~2 = 0.9759,P 〈 0.05） were revealed,which describe the relationship between the optimal soil grid unit resolution（y,km） and soil polygon unit map scale（1：10 000x）,the ratio（R？,%） of the optimal soil grid size to average polygon patch size（？,km~2） and the ？,with the highest R~2 among different mathematical regressions,respectively.This knowledge may facilitate the grid partitioning of regions during the investigation and simulation of SOC pool dynamics at a certain map scale,and be referenced to other landscape polygon patches＇ mesh partition.
•The old-growth forest was damaged more than twice as much as the secondary forest.•Forest structure and composition affect the vulnerability of forests to typhoons.•This study advances knowledge ...about how old-growth forests respond to climate change.
Typhoons are having an increasingly severe and widespread impact on forest ecosystems around the world due to climate change. However, few studies have examined the impacts of strong typhoons on subtropical evergreen broadleaved forests, particularly in rare old-growth forests. Here, using a 20 ha permanent subtropical forest plot in Guangdong Province, southern China, the impact of super Typhoon Mangkhut on secondary and old-growth subtropical evergreen broadleaved forests was quantitatively investigated and compared. The old-growth forest was damaged more than twice as much as the secondary forest, as measured by the proportion of the basal area of damaged trees. Forest structure and composition played a significant role in determining the vulnerability of forests to powerful typhoons. This study advances knowledge about how old-growth forests respond to global climate change.
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