We give some new definitions of D *-metric spaces and we prove a common fixed point theorem for a class of mappings under the condition of weakly commuting mappings in complete D *-metric spaces. We get some improved versions of several fixed point theorems in complete D *-metric spaces.

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Coupling solid-phase microextraction (SPME) with ambient mass spectrometry using surface coated wooden-tip probe was achieved for the first time and applied in the analysis of ultra trace perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in complex environmental and biological samples. We modified n-octadecyldimethyl[3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl]ammonium chloride on the surface of sharp wooden tip via silanization to form a novel SPME probe, which was then used for highly selective enrichment of PFCs from complex matrices and applied as a solid substrate to induce electrospray ionization for mass spectrometric analysis. The porous structural surface together with the dual extraction mechanisms (reversed phase adsorption and ion exchange adsorption) demonstrated that the SPME probe has an outstanding enrichment capacity, enhancing sensitivity by approximately 4000-8000 folds for the detection in aqueous samples, and 100-500-fold in whole blood and milk samples. The method showed good linearity, with correlation coefficient values (r(2)) of no less than 0.9931 for eight target PFCs. The limits of detection and qualification of the eight PFCs were 0.06-0.59 and 0.21-1.98 ng/L, respectively. Quantification of real samples was achieved by isotope internal standard calibration curve method or isotope dilution method, and ultratrace levels of PFCs present in lake water, river water, whole blood, and milk samples had been successfully detected and qualified.

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Schistosoma japonicum ( S. japonicum ) is one of the etiological agents of schistosomiasis, a widespread zoonotic parasitic disease. However, the mechanism of the balanced co-existence between the host immune system and S. japonicum as well as their complex interaction remains unclear. In this study, 16S rRNA gene sequencing, combined with metagenomic sequencing approach as well as ultraperformance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry metabolic profiling, was applied to demonstrate changes in the gut microbiome community structure during schistosomiasis progression, the functional interactions between the gut bacteria and S. japonicum infection in BALB/c mice, and the dynamic metabolite changes of the host. The results showed that both gut microbiome and the metabolites were significantly altered at different time points after the infection. Decrease in richness and diversity as well as differed composition of the gut microbiota was observed in the infected status when compared with the uninfected status. At the phylum level, the gut microbial communities in all samples were dominated by Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, and Deferribacteres, while at the genus level, Lactobacillus, Lachnospiraceae NK4A136 group, Bacteroides, Staphylococcus , and Alloprevotella were the most abundant. After exposure, Roseburia , and Ruminococcaceae UCG-014 decreased, while Staphylococcus, Alistipes , and Parabacteroides increased, which could raise the risk of infections. Furthermore, LEfSe demonstrated several bacterial taxa that could discriminate between each time point of S. japonicum infection. Besides that, metagenomic analysis illuminated that the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling pathway and the chemokine signaling pathway were significantly perturbed after the infection. Phosphatidylcholine and colfosceril palmitate in serum as well as xanthurenic acid, naphthalenesulfonic acid, and pimelylcarnitine in urine might be metabolic biomarkers due to their promising diagnostic potential at the early stage of the infection. Alterations of glycerophospholipid and purine metabolism were also discovered in the infection. The present study might provide further understanding of the mechanisms during schistosome infection in aspects of gut microbiome and metabolites, and facilitate the discovery of new targets for early diagnosis and prognostic purposes. Further validations of potential biomarkers in human populations are necessary, and the exploration of interactions among S. japonicum , gut microbiome, and metabolites is to be deepened in the future.

In this paper, a necessary and sufficient conditions for the strong convergence to a common fixed point of a finite family of continuous pseudocontractive mappings are proved in an arbitrary real Banach space using an implicit iteration scheme recently introduced by Xu and Ori [H.K. Xu, R.G. Ori, An implicit iteration process for nonexpansive mappings, Numer. Fuct. Anal. Optim. 22 (2001) 767-773] in condition α n ∈ (0, 1], and also strong and weak convergence theorem of a finite family of strictly pseudocontractive mappings of Browder-Petryshyn type is obtained. The results presented extend and improve the corresponding results of M.O. Osilike [M.O. Osilike, Implicit iteration process for common fixed points of a finite family of strictly pseudocontractive maps, J. Math.