BackgroundNative Americans (NAs) experience higher rates of chronic pain than other U.S. ethnic/racial groups. This may be partly caused by stress from interpersonal discrimination, which promotes pain-related catastrophizing and anxiety, cognitive-emotional processes that amplify pain. Greater identification with NA culture has been shown to buffer against negative health outcomes for NA communities, therefore the present study examined whether greater identification with NA culture buffers against the harmful effects of discrimination on pain-related anxiety and catastrophizing.Material and MethodsParticipants were 153 healthy, chronic pain-free NAs enrolled in the Oklahoma Study of Native American Pain Risk (OK-SNAP). Identification with NA culture was assessed by the Native American Acculturation Scale (NAAS), which was reversed scored so that higher scores=greater identification. Interpersonal discrimination was assessed by the Everyday Discrimination Scale. Following laboratory pain tasks, situational pain catastrophizing was assessed with the Pain Catastrophizing Scale and pain-related anxiety was assessed with a visual analogue scale (VAS).ResultsA significant interaction was found between discrimination and identification with NA culture when predicting pain catastrophizing (ΔR2 = 0.034, p = 0.017). Greater identification with NA culture was associated with a significant positive relationship between discrimination and pain catastrophizing (p < 0.001), whereas less identification was associated with a non-significant relationship (p = 0.32). Although discrimination was associated with higher pain-related anxiety (p = 0.015), this was not moderated by identification with NA culture (ΔR2 = 0.009, p = 0.23), nor did identification with NA culture predict pain-related anxiety. An additional analysis found that NAs who identified more with NA culture experienced more discrimination (p = 0.012).ConclusionsThese findings suggest that the relationship between discrimination and pain catastrophizing is stronger for NAs who identify more strongly with NA culture, an effect that is likely due to these individuals having greater overall exposure to discrimination. Alternatively, the NAAS may not capture the full range of cultural processes that buffer against negative health outcomes for NAs. Future research should examine other facets of cultural resilience.

The sensitivity of the atmospheric pressure ionization mass spectrometer (API-MS) has been improved owing to the advancement in the atmospheric pressure interface. However, ion scattering losses in the first vacuum chamber undermine this improvement. In this work, a novel multipole ion guide, called a segmented-field-gradient-focusing ion guide (SFGF-IG), was developed to address these losses, especially caused by the asymmetric-shaped supersonic jet generated by a slot-shaped inlet. The SFGF-IG combined a dodecapole (65 mm in length) and a quadrupole (125 mm in length), with each segment having its tilt angle optimized. By analyzing three different ion trajectory conditions, "Transmitted", "Reflected", and "Absorbed″, the key factors affecting the ion transfer in the SFGF-IG were investigated. Here, this analytical method for developing a high-performance ion guide was expanded to account for the influence of background gas. This revised method provides a framework for understanding the dominant mechanism that influences ion transfer within high-performance ion guides under complex background gas flow. Results showed that the SFGF-IG reduced ion scattering losses in the first vacuum chamber, which allowed the greater gas-throughput slot-shaped inlet to increase the API-MS sensitivity. Compared with the conventional ion funnel, the SFGF-IG demonstrated a significantly reduced low-mass discrimination effect and improved ion transfer across a wide mass range (100-2000 m/z), enabling simultaneous analysis of high-, medium-, and low-mass ions. Moreover, to verify the actual performance of the SFGF-IG, it was integrated into a home-built quadrupole-linear ion trap tandem MS (Q-LITMS) equipped with a slot-shaped inlet. The instrument detection limit (IDL) of the reserpine reached 0.15 fg (RSD 6.08%), two-fold lower than the conventional Q-LITMS configuration (0.3 fg and RSD 11.1%). This work provides a complete development approach for a high-performance ion guide to reduce ion scattering losses and further enhances the sensitivity of laboratory-scale MS.

The purpose of this study was to test the association between frequency of exposure to discriminatory police practices and poor mental health among Black Americans and to explore potential moderators of that association. Survey data were collected from 227 Black Americans. The survey measured exposure to negative police behaviors, two dimensions of Black Americans' identity, psychological distress, somatic symptoms, and demographic covariates. The data were analyzed with OLS regression to test the direct effects of police discrimination exposure on distress and somatic symptoms and the potential for moderator effects of two dimensions of racial identity: public and private regard. The analysis found that frequency of exposure to police discrimination was not significantly associated with distress, but it was significantly associated with somatic symptoms, suggesting that Black Americans respond to police discrimination via expressions of physical pain, rather than psychological discontent. Neither dimension of racial identity was directly associated with somatic symptoms, but they both predicted less psychological distress. Private regard did not moderate the association between police discrimination and either outcome, but higher public regard amplified the association between police discrimination and both distress and somatic symptoms. These moderator effects suggest that Black Americans who believe the public holds them in high regard are more sensitive to the negative health effects of police discrimination, perhaps because they are less prepared and more taken aback when treated poorly by the police.

Host phylogeny can imprint the gut microbiota, but it is often masked by diet and environment. Leveraging the standardized husbandry of a zoological collection, we profiled fecal microbiota from 55 captive artiodactyls representing 12 species in Bovidae, Cervidae, and Camelidae using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing targeting the V3–V4 region on the Illumina MiSeq platform. Community composition differed significantly among host families (Bray–Curtis PERMANOVA, R2 = 0.1075, p = 0.001). A host–microbiota tanglegram, which juxtaposes the host phylogeny with a dendrogram of microbiota similarity, recovered a topology congruent with the host phylogeny, with camelids forming a distinct branch separate from true ruminants in both trees. The linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe; LDA ≥ 3.5) identified family-specific biomarkers, including enrichment of Acinetobacter/Moraxellaceae in Bovidae, Rikenellaceae (the Rikenellaceae_RC9_gut_group) in Cervidae, and Rummeliibacillus together with the Christensenellaceae_R-7_group in Camelidae. Functional inference with PICRUSt2 revealed significant differences in KEGG level-2 pathways (e.g., carbohydrate metabolism and xenobiotics biodegradation), consistent with taxonomic shifts. Altogether, these findings show that—even under uniform captive conditions—host evolutionary history remains a primary determinant of both the structure and the predicted functions of the artiodactyl gut microbiota, refining the scope of phylosymbiosis and providing actionable baselines for veterinary monitoring and conservation management in zoo settings.

ObjectiveEquity is a key issue in the utilization of health services. However, existing research have focused on the developed eastern regions of China, and fails to account for the equity of the level of health service utilization (out-of-pocket payments). This study aims to assess the equity of health service utilization. By analyzing socioeconomic disparities in access to medical services, we seek to identify key barriers and provide evidence for policymakers to improve equitable healthcare delivery in resource-limited settings.MathodsTaking the data of the 7th National Health Service Survey in Gansu Province as an example, based on Anderson model, the equity of health service utilization and its influencing factors were evaluated by using the centralized index and its decomposition method. On this basis, it screened out patients who had used outpatient or inpatient services from the survey subjects, and extracted their out-of-pocket payments incurred by using the above services. Recentered influence functions regression and its decomposition method were used to analyze the equity difference of health service utilization level between urban and rural residents, and the contributing factors were discussed.ResultThe centralized index of outpatient service utilization was 0.0422 and − 0.0268, and the centralized index of inpatient service utilization was 0.1462 and − 0.1294, respectively. The utilization of both outpatient and inpatient services tends to be high income residents in cities, while in rural areas, the lower the economic level of residents, the higher the utilization rate. Further analysis of the level of health service utilization showed that the Gini coefficients of out-of-pocket payments for urban and rural patients were 0.703 and 0.748, respectively, indicating a large inequality. Recentered influence functions regression and its decomposition results show that rural patients have greater inequality than urban patients in out-of-pocket payments for out-patient and in-patient care, and there is discrimination effect.ConclusionAt present, there are still inequities in the utilization of health services in less developed areas of China, especially in the utilization of inpatient services, but the degree of inequity is reduced compared with previous studies. In terms of the fairness of health service utilization level, the inequality degree of rural residents is greater than that of urban residents, and there is a greater discrimination effect. This finding suggests that it needs to develop and implement health equity policies for rural residents to ensure that they are not discriminated against in their access to health services. Equity in the utilization of health services is also monitored and evaluated to ensure the effectiveness of the policies and equal treatment in their implementation.

Introduction. Obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) is characterized by chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH), which contributes to systemic complications, including metabolic and gastrointestinal disorders. Emerging evidence suggests a critical role of the gut microbiota in mediating these effects; however, the impact of CIH on the gut microbiota remains poorly understood.Gap Statement. While CIH is associated with systemic metabolic dysfunction, the specific alterations in gut microbiota composition and function induced by CIH remain understudied. Filling this knowledge gap could elucidate microbiota-mediated mechanisms of OSAS pathogenesis and identify therapeutic targets.Aim. To investigate the effects of CIH on the gut microbiota structure and functional pathways in a mouse model of OSAS.Methodology. Male C57BL/6 mice were exposed to normoxia (NM) or CIH conditions for 6 weeks. Faecal samples were collected via stress defecation before intervention (NM0 and CIH0 groups) and after 6 weeks (NM6 and CIH6 groups). Gut microbiota composition was assessed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and functional potential was predicted via Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved States 2.Results. A total of 40 faecal samples (10 mice/group) were analysed. No significant differences in microbiota composition, alpha diversity or beta diversity were observed between groups before intervention. CIH significantly altered gut microbiota composition and abundance. At the genus level, Bacteroides abundance increased (rank-biserial=0.558, P=0.014) in CIH6 mice, while Bifidobacterium (Cohen’s d=1.779, P=0.002), Helicobacter (rank-biserial=0.609, P=0.007) and Prevotella (rank-biserial=0.541, P=0.0173) decreased. Linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe) and random forest model analyses identified these genera as key discriminators of microbiota composition. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes functional prediction revealed 28 significantly altered tertiary metabolic pathways in CIH6 mice, including biotin, lipoic acid, beta-alanine and cyanoamino acid metabolism.Conclusion. CIH induces gut microbiota dysbiosis, disrupts short-chain fatty acid-producing bacteria and impacts multiple metabolic pathways. This study provides evidence linking gut microbiota alterations to OSAS pathogenesis and offers a theoretical foundation for targeting the microbiome as a potential therapeutic strategy for CIH-related disorders.

The enterotype concept allows the differentiation of gut microbiota in relation to individual characteristics and is determined by the genetics and external stressors of the host. It was previously shown that not all clustering methods can accurately identify such enterotypes. Therefore, this pilot study primarily aimed to compare different algorithms for enterotype definition and to estimate the factors that correlate with the differentiation of the gut microbiota in adolescents with different body weights. Adolescents with normal body weight (N) and obesity (O) (aged 11-17 years) were included in this pilot study. Based on the analysis of the V3-V4 variable regions of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplicon libraries, the main enterotypes of the gut microbiota of adolescents were characterized using three approaches (E-typing A, B, and C) according to the bacterial taxa that were chosen for differentiation. For sample clustering, we used Bray-Curtis, Jensen-Shannon divergence, and weighted and unweighted UniFrac distance metrics. Clustering was assessed using the silhouette index. Meanwhile, the Kruskal-Wallis test was used to determine the relationship between enterotype and biochemical parameters. The O and N groups comprised 18 and 22 adolescents, respectively, and, according to anthropometric data, differed significantly only in weight and body mass index (BMI). The linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe) plot showed that the presence of minor and rare phylotypes in the gut microbiota differed between the two groups of adolescents. The distribution of individual samples based on the principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) showed that the gut microbiomes in the adolescents were not grouped in the N or O groups but were distributed according to the composition of the main bacterial taxa. We assessed the contribution of the Bacteroides, Prevotella, Subdoligranulum, and Ruminococcus phylotypes to the microbiota of the adolescents in the two groups. The Subdoligranulum enterotype was significantly more represented in the N group than in the O group when the E-typing A approach to enterotyping was applied. Pairwise comparisons were performed with corrections for multiple testing between the biochemical parameter levels of the different enterotypes. Bilirubin levels were lower in adolescents with the gut microbiota enterotype Ruminococcus-Subdoligranulum than in those with the enterotype Bacteroides when the E-typing B approach was used for differentiation. This pilot study comprised a small group of adolescents with normal body weight and obesity; we identified Bacteroides as the main enterotype, regardless of body weight. A stable microbial community is formed in the gut during adolescence, which determines its stratification by enterotype.

Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), a naturally occurring cannabinoid and structural analog of THC, exhibits a dual pharmacological profile as a CB1 receptor agonist/antagonist and a partial CB2 agonist. This study evaluated the effects of THCV in a THC discrimination model in rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 16, 300–340 g, PND60) were trained under a fixed ratio 20 (FR20) schedule to discriminate THC (3 mg/kg) from vehicle. Substitution tests were conducted with THC (0.325–3 mg/kg), THCV (0.75–6 mg/kg), and THC-THCV combinations. THCV produced an inverted U-shaped substitution curve, significantly differing from vehicle (p = 0.008). At 3 mg/kg, THCV partially substituted for THC (54.6% ± 17.82, p = 0.003). Response rate significantly increased during the substitution test with 3 mg/kg of THCV (p = 0.042). THCV (6 mg/kg) reversed THC (0.75 mg/kg)-induced responding (p = 0.040), with no significant change in response rate (p = 0.247). However, THCV combined with THC (1.5 mg/kg) affected response rates (p = 0.012), with 6 mg/kg significantly reducing rates vs. 3 mg/kg (p = 0.013). Blood THC and 11-OH-THC levels remained unchanged when THC was combined with THCV. The findings suggest THCV can partially mimic or block THC’s discriminative effects in a dose-dependent manner, possibly acting as a partial CB1 agonist.

Purpose Age discrimination, exacerbated by global aging and increased age diversity, often impedes organizational citizenship behavior among employees, such as knowledge sharing. However, existing research on the influencing mechanism of this phenomenon remains inconclusive. Drawing upon the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, this study aims to investigate the psychological process linking workplace age discrimination to employees’ knowledge-sharing behaviors, as well as the moderating factors, that may influence this relationship. Design/methodology/approach This study used a quantitative research design, using three-wave data collected via the snowball sampling method and structured questionnaire surveys. The sample consisted of 455 employees from China’s diverse industries. Data analysis included confirmatory factor analysis, bootstrapping and regression analyses conducted using Mplus and the Process macro for SPSS. Findings The research findings indicate that workplace age discrimination serves as a key barrier for employees’ knowledge-sharing behaviors, with the mediation of job insecurity. In addition, task interdependence moderates the relationship between job insecurity and knowledge-sharing behavior and the indirect effect of workplace age discrimination on employees’ knowledge-sharing behavior through job insecurity. Originality/value Drawing on the COR theory, this study investigates the mediating mechanisms underlying the impact of workplace age discrimination on employees’ knowledge-sharing behaviors while further examining the factor moderating this relationship. The results confirm that workplace age discrimination depletes employees’ psychological resources (job insecurity) and triggers employees’ defensive posture of self-protection by reducing knowledge sharing. Furthermore, task interdependence, as a work characteristic, serves as an effective source of resource compensation to alleviate the obstacles of job insecurity caused by age discrimination to employees’ knowledge-sharing behavior.

To investigate the impact of temporary stoma creation and its subsequent closure on gut microbiota composition and diversity in patients undergoing rectal cancer surgery. Nineteen patients with primary rectal cancer who underwent curative surgery were enrolled and divided into two groups: stoma (n = 10, all underwent temporary ileostomy) and non-stoma (n = 9). Fecal samples were collected preoperatively and 6 months postoperatively. Gut microbiota composition was analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Alpha diversity (observed operational taxonomic units and Shannon index) and beta diversity (UniFrac distances) were compared between time points. Taxonomic shift was identified using Linear discriminant analysis Effect Size (LEfSe). In the stoma group, alpha diversity significantly decreased after surgery (p = 0.049), and beta diversity analyses revealed significant changes in microbial composition (PERMANOVA; unweighted p = 0.026; weighted p = 0.046). LEfSe analysis identified an increased abundance of potentially pathogenic genera (e.g., Enterococcus and Eggerthella) and a decreased abundance of short-chain fatty acid-producing genera (e.g., Megamonas and Anaerostipes). These changes persisted for at least 6 months after stoma closure. In contrast, the non-stoma group showed no significant alterations in microbial diversity or composition over time. Temporary stoma creation in rectal cancer surgery induces persistent alterations in gut microbiota; these alterations are characterized by reduced diversity and a shift toward a dysbiotic profile with increased pathogenic and decreased beneficial taxa. These findings highlight the potential need for microbiota-targeted strategies to mitigate long-term dysbiosis in patients undergoing stoma-related procedures.

Latinx immigrants’ health was more likely to be infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus than U.S.-born individuals. The current study tested a path model based on critical consciousness theory explaining the role of social change agency in the link between discrimination and social support, the impact of the virus, and positive health changes. A sample of 536 Latinx immigrants in the United States were recruited for this study via national immigration policy advocacy networks. Three research questions and nine hypotheses were probed using path analysis, assessing model fit, and estimating indirect effects by bootstrapping. Global fit indices demonstrated that the model was a good fit with the data. Results from path analysis supported six of seven structural links in the path. Specifically, discrimination and social support were negatively linked in a bidirectional way. Discrimination was associated with lower social change agency, while social support was linked to greater agency. Social agency was linked to lower infection history, while discrimination was linked to greater infection history. Positive health changes were predicted by social support. Finally, results from indirect effects supported the mediating role of social change agency in the links between discrimination, social support, and infection history. These results may inform the development of health prevention interventions to mitigate further health disparities, for education and training of health psychologists, and for policies concerned with immigrants’ recovery from the aftermath of the pandemic.

IntroductionNecrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is an inflammatory bowel disease that primarily affects preterm infants. Predisposing risk factors for NEC include prematurity, formula feeding, anemia, and sepsis. To date, no studies have investigated the gut microbiota of preterm infants with NEC in India.MethodIn the current study, shotgun metagenomic sequencing was performed on fecal samples from premature infants with NEC and healthy preterm infants (n = 24). Sequencing was conducted using the NovaSeq X Plus platform, generating 2 × 150 bp paired-end reads. The infants were matched based on gestational age and postnatal age.ResultThe median time to NEC diagnosis was 9 days (range: 1–30 days). Taxonomic analysis revealed a high prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae at the family level, with the genera Klebsiella and Escherichia particularly prominent in neonates with NEC. No statistically significant differences in alpha or beta diversity were observed between stool samples from infants with and without NEC. Linear regression analysis demonstrated that Enterobacteriaceae were significantly more abundant in stool samples from infants with NEC than without NEC (q < 0.05). Differential abundance analysis using Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) identified Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli as enriched in the gut microbiota of preterm infants with NEC. Functional analysis revealed an increase in genes associated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) O-antigen, the type IV secretion system (T4SS), the L-rhamnose pathway, quorum sensing, and iron transporters, including ABC transporters, in stool samples from infants with NEC.ConclusionThe high prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae and enrichment of LPS O-antigen and T4SS genes may be associated with NEC in Indian preterm infants.

Abstract Personal growth initiative may serve as an internal mechanism through which urban, educated women attain empowerment in environments marked by strong patriarchal structures and collectivist ideologies. This study examines the relationship between personal growth initiative – defined as a self-directed pursuit of psychological development – and perceived gender discrimination and gender role attitudes, aiming to explain changes in empowerment among urban, educated Pakistani women ( N = 621, 23–59 years; M = 30.65, SD = 6.68). A moderated mediation model was tested, wherein personal growth initiative was conceptualized as both a protective factor and a moderator in the indirect relationship between gender role attitudes and empowerment, via perceived gender discrimination. Modern gender role attitudes were negatively associated with heightened perceptions of gender discrimination, and positively associated with women empowerment. Higher levels of personal growth initiative weakened this negative association of gender discrimination and women empowerment, both directly and indirectly. The findings highlight personal growth initiative as a promising psychological resource that may help urban, educated Pakistani women. By focusing on internal agency and personal development, the study offers insights into how individual-level strengths can support empowerment within challenging sociocultural environments.

Indigenous Peoples experience the highest age-adjusted prevalence of type 2 diabetes of any racial group in the U.S. Though the management of type 2 diabetes requires regular healthcare visits, North American Indigenous individuals with diabetes do not always utilize the healthcare available to them, and this lack of utilization may lead to poor health outcomes over time. Drawing on literature showing that North American Indigenous patients experience discrimination in healthcare and that experiencing discrimination in healthcare is associated with healthcare avoidance and/or delay, the current study conceptualized unmet healthcare utilization as healthcare avoidance and used path analysis with longitudinal data (four points of data collection) to examine the relationships between healthcare discrimination, healthcare avoidance, and self-rated health in a sample of 192 Indigenous adults with type 2 diabetes from the northern Midwest U.S. We found that healthcare avoidance was negatively associated with baseline self-rated health, and that healthcare avoidance partially explained the negative effect of lifetime healthcare discrimination on self-rated health at the final follow-up of the study. These results show that healthcare avoidance statistically mediates the relationship between healthcare discrimination and self-rated health and suggest that healthcare avoidance is an important mechanism linking healthcare discrimination to worse self-rated health over time. Ultimately, we argue that creating more inclusive and less microaggressive healthcare spaces is important for individual health outcomes and macro-level health inequities. Continued efforts to understand instances of and to diminish healthcare mistreatment of Indigenous Peoples are recommended.

IntroductionThe exogenous application of phytohormones is a widely adopted approach to enhance crop productivity. However, the precise regulatory effects of different phytohormones on plant antioxidant systems, rhizosphere microbial subcommunities (abundant, moderate, and rare), and their interactions with plant growth remain poorly understood.MethodsThis study explored the effects of melatonin (MT), strigolactone (SL), and 24-epibrassinolide (BR) on the phenotypic traits, physiological properties, and rhizosphere microbial subcommunities of Paris polyphylla var. chinensis (Franch.) Hara (PPC) through controlled pot experiments.ResultsOur study demonstrated that MT and SL significantly increased PPC biomass by 69.32% and 15.23%, respectively, whereas BR at 2 mg/L inhibited root development. MT and SL may influence the growth of PPC by modulating the antioxidant system. In addition, phytohormone treatments distinctly altered the structure of soil microbial subcommunities, with partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM) revealing that MT exerted a dominant influence on PPC biomass by regulating the structure of abundant bacterial subcommunities. Furthermore, linear discriminant analysis effect size identified key microbial taxa associated with the application of phytohormones, further substantiating their roles in biomass enhancement.ConclusionThese findings provide significant insights into the ecological management of phytohormones for sustainable agricultural practices.

Diversity among college students has increased and, yet experiences of discrimination persist and predict mental health symptoms. The role of various overlapping demographics in predicting discrimination and mental health is understudied. In this study, we examined how gender,race, Latinx ethnicity, and citizenship status relate to experiences of discrimination and mental health outcomes in N = 1665 college students in Texas. Our results indicated that discrimination was endorsed at higher rates by People of Color, Latinxs, women, and non-citizens. Women and non-citizens endorsed the highest mental health symptoms. Multivariate analyses demonstrated greatest vulnerability for discrimination among Latinx women. Regarding mental health, experiences of discrimination associated with stigmatization were associated with deleterious mental health outcomes, particularly for Women of Color. Reflecting the growing scholarship on intersectionality, race and Latinx ethnicity acted with gender to compound risk for discrimination and the effect of discrimination on mental health.

Accepting the Challenge and Committing to the Future of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Science.

To compare differences in gut microbiota between dyslipidemic and normolipidemic normal-weight adults in China. Normal-weight adults aged 18-59 years participating in the 2018 "China Health and Nutrition Survey" were enrolled. Fasting venous blood was collected to measure triglycerides(TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C), and total cholesterol(TC). Fecal samples underwent 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Differences in gut microbial α-diversity and β-diversity were compared between normolipidemic and different dyslipidemic subgroups. Linear discriminant analysis effect size(LEfSe) was used for dimensionality reduction, followed by logistic regression to identify differential bacterial genera. A total of 1645 participants were included, with an average age of(44.4 ± 9.8) years. Compared to the normal TG group, the dyslipidemic TG group exhibited significantly reduced α-diversity and distinct β-diversity. No significant differences in α-diversity or β-diversity were found between normal lipidemic groups and dyslipidemic groups for TC, HDL-C or LDL-C. After adjusting for age, sex, diet quality, physical activity, and region, the [Ruminococcus]＿gnavus＿group was associated with a higher risk of dyslipidemic TG(OR=1.043, 95%CI 1.011-1.077). Conversely, the genera Faecalibacterium, Collinsella, Clostridia＿UCG-014, Anaerostipes, RF39, and Fusicatenibacter were associated with a lower risk of dyslipidemic TG(OR=0.935, 95%CI 0.893-0.982; OR=0.965, 95%CI 0.937-0.994; OR=0.942, 95%CI 0.914-0.970; OR=0.931, 95%CI 0.886-0.980; OR=0.964, 95%CI 0.934-0.995; OR=0.959, 95%CI 0.925-0.996, respectively). The diversity and characteristic bacterial genera of the gut microbiota significantly differ between normal-weight Chinese individuals with hypertriglyceridemia and those with normal TG levels.

Antheraea pernyi (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) is an economically important silk-producing insect, whose gut microbiota play a crucial role in growth, development, and nutrient metabolism. This study focused on the entire larval developmental stages of A. pernyi. Using the Illumina MiSeq high-throughput sequencing platform, we performed 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing on the gut microbiota of laboratory-reared A. pernyi larvae, analyzing in detail the composition and diversity characteristics of the gut microbial communities across all five instars (1st to 5th instar). Additionally, functional predictions were conducted to explore the potential roles of these microbiota during larvae development. The study revealed that the core gut microbiota of A. pernyi larvae primarily consisted of Actinomycetota (39.78%), Cyanobacteriota (32.46%), Bacillota (18.08%), and Pseudomonadota (9.02%). Among these, Actinomycetota dominated in the 1st to 4th-instar larvae, while Cyanobacteriota became the predominant phylum in the 5th instar. Linear discriminant analysis effect size identified statistically significant biomarkers across different instar larvae of A. pernyi. Alpha diversity analysis showed that gut microbiota diversity initially increased and then decreased with larval development, peaking in the 3rd instar, and reaching its lowest level in the 5th instar. Principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) of beta diversity indicated that the gut microbiota structures of the 1st to 4th instars were similar but significantly differed from that of the 5th instar. Functional prediction analysis based on the KEGG database revealed that Carbohydrate metabolism and Amino acid metabolism-related genes were significantly lower in the 5th instar compared to other instars, while Energy metabolism and Cofactor and vitamin metabolism-related genes were significantly higher. This study offers valuable insights for the development of gut microbial resources in Lepidoptera insects.

The diet-gut microbiota-disease axis has been explored in infancy, but its role in preschool atopic dermatitis (AD) remains unclear. This study investigated associations between dietary patterns, gut microbiota, and AD severity in Korean preschoolers. We evaluated 75 preschool children aged 3-6 years, including 24 with AD and 51 healthy controls. AD severity was assessed by Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) and SCORing Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD), and quality of life by Children's Dermatology Life Quality Index (CDLQI). Gut microbiota composition was characterized using 16S rRNA sequencing, and group differences were analyzed by Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe). Based on factor analysis, dietary patterns were categorized into a Traditional Korean (TK) diet and a Processed food and Snack (PS) diet. Children with AD who followed the PS diet showed lower vitamin C intake and higher levels of Dorea and Anaerostipes (LDA scores: 3.4 and 3.9). This microbial composition was associated with greater sleep-disturbing itching and poorer CDLQI (p = .032 and .041). Lower vitamin C intake correlated with higher Anaerostipes abundance (r = -.436, p = .042) as well as with higher EASI (r = -.52, p = .03) and SCORAD (r = -.41, p = .045). Dorea abundance was positively correlated with daytime itching (r = .42, p = .049). In preschool children with AD, a dietary pattern high in processed foods and snacks was associated with increased Dorea and Anaerostipes and greater AD severity and poorer quality of life. These findings suggest that dietary modification may alleviate clinical symptoms in early childhood AD by modulating the diet-gut-skin axis.