Effects of Different Connection Modes of Electroacupuncture on Electrocardiogram and Nerve Discharge in Rats.

Electroacupuncture (EA) is one of the most commonly used methods in acupuncture and has a good effect on pain, depression, sensory movement disorders, and other diseases. The effectiveness of EA is influenced by many factors, such as the accuracy of acupoint selection, the duration and course of EA treatment, and EA parameters. However, it has rarely been discussed whether the positive and negative electrodes of the EA instrument with acupoints at different locations and distances have an effect on the curative effect.

Unsupervised Ensemble Learning for Efficient Integration of Pre-trained Polygenic Risk Scores.

The growing availability of pre-trained polygenic risk score (PRS) models has enabled their integration into real-world applications, reducing the need for extensive data labeling, training, and calibration. However, selecting the most suitable PRS model for a specific target population remains challenging, due to issues such as limited transferability, data het-erogeneity, and the scarcity of observed phenotype in real-world settings. Ensemble learning offers a promising avenue to enhance the predictive accuracy of genetic risk assessments, but most existing methods often rely on observed phenotype data or additional genome-wide association studies (GWAS) from the target population to optimize ensemble weights, limiting their utility in real-time implementation.

Regulatory workshop on standardisation of clinical procedures, endpoints and data robustness of human challenge studies - A stakeholder meeting report.

Inno4Vac, a public-private partnership funded by the IMI2/EU/EFPIA Joint Undertaking (IMI2 JU), brings together academic institutions, SMEs, and pharmaceutical companies to accelerate and de-risk vaccine development. The project has made significant strides in the selection and production of challenge agents for influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and toxigenic Clostridioides difficile for controlled human infection model studies (CHIMs). A regulatory workshop held on March 20, 2024, addressed the standardisation of clinical procedures, ethical considerations, endpoints, and data integrity, highlighting the ongoing initiatives related to these CHIMs.

The endocuticle structural glycoprotein AgSgAbd-2-like is required for cuticle formation and survival in the melon aphid Aphis gossypii.

Cuticular proteins are essential for cuticle formation, molting, and survival in insects. However, functional analysis of cuticular proteins in the melon aphid has been limited. In this study, we identified an endocuticle structural glycoprotein (ESG) AgSgAbd-2-like in the melon aphid Aphis gossypii, which is a member of the RR-1 subfamily of the CPR (cuticular protein containing the conserved Rebers-Riddiford motif) chitin-binding proteins.

miR-18a-5p/PXR/SREBP2 Was Involved in MAFLD Associated With Methyl Tert-Butyl Ether Among Petrol Station Workers.

Background: Metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), previously defined as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), has been shown to be closely related to many environmental pollutants. Lately, we found methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), a new environmental pollutant, could increase NAFLD risk in American adults, which still needs more population epidemiological studies to verify, and its pathogenic mechanism is not yet clear.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study among petrol station workers, diagnosed their MAFLD according to internationally recognised diagnostic criteria, assessed the potential association of MTBE exposure with MAFLD risk, and explored the miR-18a-5p/PXR/SREBP2 pathway as possible pathogenic mechanisms in male Wistar rats and HepaRG cells treated with MTBE.