Search

Objective: To investigate the causal relationship between risk factors and spontaneous pneumothorax using Mendelian randomization. Methods: Risk factors for spontaneous pneumothorax were identified through searches of English and Chinese databases. Single nucleotide polymorphism information was extracted from the GWAS database, with risk factor as exposure and spontaneous pneumothorax as outcome, and five methods, namely, inverse variance weighting, MR-Egger, weighted median, simple model and weighted model, were used to evaluate the causality between risk factors and spontaneous pneumothorax. Heterogeneity and leave-one-out tests were used for sensitivity analysis to evaluate the robustness of the causal relationship. Results: The search yielded 117 risk factors, and 50 risk factors for which genetic data were available were included. Height, COVID, lymphocytes, standing tall, snoring, exertion lung volume, squamous lung cancer, first second expiratory volume with exertion, and asthma were positively associated with SP, and hip circumference and exertion lung volume were negatively associated with SP. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and diaphragmatic hernia may be associated with SP. Conclusion: This study identified significant causal relationship between lymphocyte count, standing tall, asthma and spontaneous pneumothorax from genetic point of view, and provided basis for its prevention and treatment.

The symmetric multi-scroll strange attractor has shown great potential in chaos-based applications due to its high complexity in phase space. Here, the approach of symmetrization is employed for attractor doubling to generate pseudo-multi-scroll attractors in a discrete map, where a carefully selected offset constant is the key to organizing coexisting attractors. By choosing the Hénon map to generate the pseudo-multi-scroll attractor and implementing the digital circuit on a microcontroller, this study fills a significant gap in the research on discrete chaotic systems. The complexity performance is further validated using a pseudo-random number generator, demonstrating substantial academic contributions to the field of chaos theory. Additionally, a pseudo-multi-scroll attractor-based squirrel search algorithm is first developed, showcasing its practical application in mobile robot path planning. This work not only advances the theoretical understanding of chaotic systems but also provides practical methods for implementation in digital systems, offering valuable insights for policy-making in advanced robotic systems and intelligent manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In previous studies, we developed a novel fusion protein named "melittin‐MIL‐2" which exhibited more anti‐tumor activity. However, it remains unclear whether melittin‐MIL‐2 possesses antitumor immune effect on lung adenocarcinoma. In this study, the immune effect and mechanism of melittin‐MIL‐2 inhibiting the growth and invasion of lung adenocarcinoma will be investigated, in order to provide novel perspectives for the immunotherapy of lung cancer. The results indicated that melittin‐MIL‐2 promoted T cell proliferation, enhanced NK cell cytotoxicity, and boosted IFN‐γ secretion in PBMCs. After melittin‐MIL‐2 stimulation, perforin expression and LAK/NK‐like killing activities of human PBMCs and NK cells were significantly enhanced. Melittin‐MIL‐2 is capable of hampering the development and proliferation of lung adenocarcinoma cell A549. ICAM‐1 and Fas expression in A549 cells exposed to melittin‐MIL‐2 rose significantly. The expression levels of TLR8 and VEGF in A549 cells decreased significantly after melittin‐MIL‐2 stimulation. In vivo, melittin‐MIL‐2 substantially impeded the growth of lung adenocarcinoma and formed an immune‐stimulating microenvironment locally in tumor tissues. In conclusion, the novel fusion protein melittin‐MIL‐2 exhibits strong anti‐tumor immune effect in lung adenocarcinoma cell A549 via activating the LFA‐1/ICAM‐1 and Fas/FasL pathways to enhance cytolytic activity, upregulating the secretion of IFN‐γ and perforin, and boosting LAK/NK‐like killing activities. Immuno‐effector cells and their secreted cytokines can form immune stimulation microenvironment locally in lung adenocarcinoma Lewis mice tissue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time‐based prospective memory (TBPM) is the ability to remember to do a planned task at the right time. In social interactions, people are often motivated to do things for others, which reflects an important factor that influences prospective memory, namely prosocial motivation. According to the motivational cognitive model, prosocial motivation promotes TBPM by paying more attention or adopting more effective strategies. This study explored the effect of prosocial motivation on TBPM under different time‐monitoring conditions within the motivational cognitive model framework. One hundred and thirty‐one university students participated in this experiment that adopted a 2 (groups: control, prosocial motivation) × 2 (viewing time conditions: limited, unlimited) between‐subjects design. The results revealed that the prosocial motivation group had better TBPM performance than the control group under both limited and unlimited viewing time conditions. At the same time, compared with the control group, the prosocial motivation group consumed more internal attention and utilized more strategies under both viewing time conditions, and their external attention was more effective. In addition, the external attention of the prosocial motivation group was higher only when time‐monitoring was unlimited. The results of this study further extend knowledge of the motivational cognitive model and expand its scope of application, which has theoretical significance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The symmetry of neuron discharging has some relationship with the electrophysiological characteristics and dynamic behavior of a neuron, and has a close relation with the symmetry of ion channels, current balance, neuron type, synaptic transmission, and network effects. Among them, the feedback and interactions in the network have a particularly direct impact on the symmetrical discharge of a neuron element. This work introduces a memristor as a synapse into a neuron cell, taking the membrane potential back to ion channels, and therefore various symmetric firing behaviors of Hindmarsh–Rose (HR) neurons are observed, including chaos and various periodic firings. By further adjusting the feedback, coexisting symmetrical discharge of the neuron is achieved. Furthermore, the impact of frequency variations on the memristor synapse is analyzed, and thus the operating regimes of memristor and resistor are classified and discussed. Circuit simulations prove the neural chaotic firings along with their symmetrized discharging processes, demonstrating the effectiveness of symmetrical control of chaotic discharge. Finally, applying the symmetrical system to DNA image encryption can effectively protect the security of images. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]