The key role of the NUDT3 gene in lung adenocarcinoma progression and its association with the manganese ion metabolism family.

Background: Lung adenocarcinoma is one of the most common malignant tumors worldwide. Its complex molecular mechanisms and high tumor heterogeneity pose significant challenges for clinical treatment. The manganese ion metabolism family plays a crucial role in various biological processes, and the abnormal expression of the NUDT3 gene in multiple cancers has drawn considerable attention.

Mediation of smoking abstinence self-efficacy on the association of nicotine dependence with smoking cessation.

Background: The nicotine dependence (ND) has negative and smoking abstinence self-efficacy (SASE) has positive effects on successful smoking cessation, but scant data is now available for what is the mediating role of SASE on the relationship between ND and successful smoking cessation. The aim of this study was to assess the abovementioned mediation.

Methods: A case-control study was conducted with 642 successful spontaneous quitters as the cases, and 700 failed spontaneous quitters as the controls.

Interleukin-17, produced by lymphocytes, promotes tumor growth and angiogenesis in a mouse model of breast cancer.

Previous studies have suggested that interleukin-17 (IL-17), an inflammatory cytokine expressed predominantly by Th17 cells, is highly expressed in tumor tissue and may help tumors to evade immune surveillance. In this study, the significance of IL-17 expression in the tumors of murine models of breast cancer was explored. BALB/c mice were injected with MA782/5S28102 or 4T1 breast cancer cell lines to establish breast tumors.

Association between mutations of the luteinizing hormone β subunit and female infertility.

To explore the association between mutations of Trp8Arg and Ile15Thr in the luteinizing hormone (LH) gene and female infertility, primary female infertility patients (n=60) and normal healthy women (n=60) were screened for mutations Trp8Arg and Ile15Thr in the LH-β subunit gene by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism, and associations were examined between the mutations and female infertility. The results showed that there were significant differences in the allele and genotype frequencies of Trp8Arg and Ile15Thr between the two groups (P<0.05).

Polymorphisms in estrogen receptor-α are associated with idiopathic female infertility.

To investigate the relationship between polymorphisms in the estrogen receptor-α (ERα) gene and unexplained female infertility, restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of ERα was employed in 150 females with idiopathic infertility (study group) and 150 healthy, age-matched females of proven fertility (control group). The results showed that the ERα allele frequencies differed significantly between the study and control groups (P=0.001).

Health resource allocation and productive efficiency of Chinese county hospitals: data from 1993 to 2005.

This study aims to assess trends in the productive efficiency of China's county hospitals during the economic transition using data from 1993 to 2005. A data envelopment analysis (DEA) framework was used to calculate the efficiency score of county hospitals in all 31 provinces. A C²R model and a BC² model were devised to respectively calculate overall and scale efficiency and pure technical efficiency at the hospital's current scale.

Maternal and infant health prepayment schemes in Shandong, China: a survey of demand and supply.

Maternal and infant prepayment schemes (MIPSs) appeared in China in the early 1980s, as a way of helping women to set aside adequate funds for childbirth. The responsibility for design was devolved to the county level, and many different approaches have been applied. For this and other reasons, there has been no consensus on important matters such as the level of prepayment, the range of covered services, and whether township health centres or family planning stations should operate the schemes.