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As one of the essential mediums of global cultural communication, American films, especially those involving women’s themes, have played a key role in shaping and transmitting women’s images and ethical concepts. The diversity of women’s roles and deep-seated emotions in contemporary American films with women’s themes is reflected in changes in society’s understanding of women’s status and rights. This paper aims to examine the impact of ethical views presented in contemporary American female-themed films on society and the audience. By collecting and analyzing popular American female-themed films in recent years, it explores ethical issues and the portrayal of women in the movie. Of the 100 films studied, more than 60% present a strong ethical tendency towards female self-identification and autonomous choice, with 40% showing a clear tendency towards gender equality and anti-discrimination. We find that the images of resilience and independence shown by female characters in movies in the face of difficulties and challenges have positively impacted the values and behavioral patterns of predominantly female audiences. Contemporary American women’s films not only reflect the current social concern and exploration of women’s issues, but also promote the public’s awareness of gender equality and women’s rights through the portrayal of diversified and profound women’s images, and provide an essential perspective for the promotion of social progress and the development of cultural pluralism.

Comorbid conditions appear to be common among individuals hospitalised with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) but estimates of prevalence vary and little is known about the prior medication use of patients. Here, we describe the characteristics of adults hospitalised with COVID-19 and compare them with influenza patients. We include 34,128 (US: 8362, South Korea: 7341, Spain: 18,425) COVID-19 patients, summarising between 4811 and 11,643 unique aggregate characteristics. COVID-19 patients have been majority male in the US and Spain, but predominantly female in South Korea. Age profiles vary across data sources. Compared to 84,585 individuals hospitalised with influenza in 2014-19, COVID-19 patients have more typically been male, younger, and with fewer comorbidities and lower medication use. While protecting groups vulnerable to influenza is likely a useful starting point in the response to COVID-19, strategies will likely need to be broadened to reflect the particular characteristics of individuals being hospitalised with COVID-19.

To explore the effects of dietary threonine on growth and ovarian development of red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii), crayfish (5.48 ± 0.19 g) were fed six isoproteic and isoenergetic diets with varying levels of threonine (7.16 g/kg (control), 9.19, 12.74, 16.44, 20.83, and 23.78 g/kg) for 8 weeks. The results showed that weight gain rate, feed conversion ratio, protein efficiency rate, protein deposition rate, and essential amino acid deposition rates obtained the optimal values when the dietary threonine level was 12.74 or 16.44 g/kg. Compared to the control group, the 12.74 g/kg group exhibited enhanced nonspecific immunity and antioxidant properties. The 16.44 g/kg group demonstrated a significant increase in the frequency of B cells and R cells in the hepatopancreas, the length and width of intestinal villi, and the activities of protease and lipase. It also showed elevated ecdysterone hormone, gonadal index (GI), cAMP content, and the relative abundance of beneficial intestinal microflora. Compared to the control group, the mRNA expression of mTOR, S6K1, 4EBP1, EcR, RXR, chitinase, PKA, Vg, cdc2, and cyclin B was significantly upregulated, and the mRNA expression of MIH was significantly downregulated in the 16.44 g/kg group. Overall, optimal dietary threonine could improve intestinal health, regulate immune function, and enhance protein utilization, molting, and growth performance of red swamp crayfish. Additionally, it improved the synthesis of yolk substance and facilitated the development of ovarian cells of female crayfish. The optimal threonine level was 14.87–16.94 g/kg (dry matter), corresponding to 42.51–48.42 g/kg of dietary protein in red swamp crayfish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The efficient way to increase the therapeutic efficacy of nanomedicines is by encouraging the penetration and enhancing the retention of nanoparticles at the tumor site. However, it is a serious dilemma that small nanoparticles can penetrate deep into the tumor tissue but easily be cleared into the surrounding tissues. In order to solve this dilemma, a smart nanosystem is created to address this problem, ensuring both the effective penetration of tiny nanoparticles (NPs) and their appropriate retention at the tumor site. CuS NPs that is modified with peptides are prepared facilely, and can aggregate in situ through the intermolecular crosslinking reaction catalyzed by the transglutaminase (TGase) abundantly expressed at the tumor site, resulting in an outstanding photothermal effect for tumor therapy. Upon NIR irradiation, the photothermal effect of CuS‐K and CuS‐Q induced the disintegration of liposomes and prompted the release of CuS‐K, CuS‐Q, and indocyanine green (ICG). Simultaneously, CuS‐K and CuS‐Q aggregated under the catalysis of TGase after being internalized by tumor cells to enhance photothermal therapy. The current study provides valuable inspiration to design nanomedicines with prolonged circulation time in the blood system, better penetration, and retention at the tumor site, and multimodal tumor therapy to achieve the desired therapeutic efficacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundWith conflicting evidence regarding the usefulness of intraaortic balloon pump (IABP), reports of IABP use in the United States have been inconsistent. Our objective was to examine trends in IABP usage in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in the United States and to evaluate the association of IABP use with mortality.MethodsThis is a retrospective, observational study using patient data obtained from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database from 1998 to 2008. Patients undergoing any PCI (1,552,602 procedures) for a primary diagnosis of symptomatic coronary artery disease and acute coronary syndrome, including non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction and ST-elevation myocardial infarction, were evaluated.ResultsThe overall use of IABP significantly decreased during the study period from 0.99% in 1998 to 0.36% in 2008 (univariate and multivariate P for trend < .0001). Patients who received IABP had substantially higher rates of shock compared with those who did not receive IABP (38.09% vs 0.70%; P < .0001), which was associated with markedly higher inhospital mortality rates (20.31% vs 0.72%; P < .0001). However, IABP use significantly decreased in patients with shock (36.5%-13.4%) and acute myocardial infarction (2.23%-0.84%) (univariate and multivariate P for trend for both < .0001). A temporal reduction in all-cause PCI-associated mortality from 1.1% in 1998 to 0.86% in 2008 (univariate and multivariate P for trend < .0001) was also observed.ConclusionsThe utilization of IABP associated with PCI significantly decreased between 1998 and 2008 in the United States, even among patients with acute myocardial infarction and shock.

The single‐functionality of traditional chemodynamic therapy (CDT) reagents usually limits the therapeutic efficacy of cancer treatment. Synergistic nanocomposites that involve cascade reaction provide a promising strategy to achieve satisfactory anticancer effects. Herein, a cuprous‐based nanocomposite (CCS@GOx@HA) is fabricated, which owns the tumor targeting ability and can undergo tumor microenvironment responsive cascade reaction to enhance the tumor therapeutic efficiency significantly. Surface modification of nanocomposite with hyaluronic acid enables the targeted delivery of the nanocomposite to cancer cells. Acid‐triggered decomposition of nanocomposite in cancer cell results in the release of Cu+, Se2− and GOx. The Cu+ improves the Fenton‐like reaction with endogenous H2O2 to generate highly toxic • OH for CDT. While GOx can not only catalyze the in situ generation of endogenous H2O2, but also accelerate the consumption of intratumoral glucose to reduce nutrient supply in tumor site. In addition, Se2− further improves the therapeutic effects of CDT by upregulating the reactive oxygen species (ROS) in tumor cells. Meanwhile, the surface modification endows the nanocomposite the good water dispersibility and biocompatibility. Moreover, in vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrate satisfactory anti‐cancer therapeutic performance by the synergistic cascade function of CCS@GOx@HA than CDT alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have reported the role of the M3 muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (M3R), a member of the G‐protein coupled receptor superfamily, encoded by the CHRM3 gene, in cardiac function and the regulation of blood pressure (BP). The aim of this study was to investigate the associations of CHRM3 genetic variants with salt sensitivity, longitudinal BP changes, and the development of hypertension in a Chinese population. We conducted a chronic dietary salt intervention experiment in a previously established Chinese cohort to analyze salt sensitivity of BP. Additionally, a 14‐year follow‐up was conducted on all participants in the cohort to evaluate the associations of CHRM3 polymorphisms with longitudinal BP changes, as well as the incidence of hypertension. The single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs10802811 within the CHRM3 gene displayed significant associations with low salt‐induced changes in systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and mean arterial pressure (MAP), while rs373288072, rs114677844, and rs663148 exhibited significant associations with SBP and MAP responses to a high‐salt diet. Furthermore, the SNP rs58359377 was associated with changes in SBP and pulse pressure (PP) over the course of 14 years. Additionally, the 14‐year follow‐up revealed a significant association between the rs619288 polymorphism and an increased risk of hypertension (OR = 1.74, 95% CI: 1.06‐2.87, p =.029). This study provides evidence that CHRM3 may have a role in salt sensitivity, BP progression, and the development of hypertension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the first observations of the three-dimensional morphology of cone photoreceptors in the living human retina. Images were acquired with a high-speed adaptive optics (AO) spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) camera. The AO system consisted of a Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor and bimorph mirror (AOptix) that measured and corrected the ocular and system aberrations at a closed-loop rate of 12 Hz. The bimorph mirror was positioned between the XY mechanical scanners and the subject's eye. The SD-OCT system consisted of a superluminescent diode and a 512 pixel line scan charge-coupled device (CCD) that acquired 75,000 A-scans/s. This rate is more than two times faster than that previously reported. Retinal motion artifacts were minimized by quickly acquiring small volume images of the retina with and without AO compensation. Camera sensitivity was sufficient to detect reflections from all major retinal layers. The regular distribution of bright spots observed within C-scans at the inner segment / outer segment (IS/OS) junctions and at the posterior tips of the OS were found to be highly correlated with one another and with the expected cone spacing. No correlation was found between the posterior tips of the OS and the other retinal layers examined, including the retinal pigment epithelium.

We report first observations of the three-dimensional morphology of cone photoreceptors in the living human retina. Images were acquired with a high-speed adaptive optics (AO) spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) camera. The AO system consists of a Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor and bimorph deformable mirror (AOptix) that measure and correct the ocular and system aberrations at a closed-loop rate of 12 Hz. Unlike previous AO-OCT and AO-SLO instruments, the bimorph mirror was strategically positioned between the XY mechanical scanners and the subject's eye so as to avoid beam distortion at the pupil plane, which is created when the mirror compensates for the refractive error of the eye. This new configuration is evaluated empirically and with commercial ray tracing software. The SD-OCT system consists of a superluminescent diode and a 512 pixel line scan charge-coupled device (CCD) that acquires 75,000 A-scans/sec. This rate is more than two times faster than that previously reported. Retina motion artifiacts were minimized by quickly acquiring small volume images of the retina with and without AO compensation. Camera sensitivity was sufficient to detect reflections from all major retinal layers. The distribution of bright spots observed within C-scans at the inner segment / outer segment (IS/OS) junction and at the posterior tips of the OS were found to be highly correlated with one another and with the expected cone spacing. No correlation was found between the IS/OS junction and either the plexiform layers or the layers immediately behind the OS posterior tips.