Objective: To observe the effects of the "Zhibian" (BL54)-toward-"Shuidao" (ST28) acupuncture on key regulatory factors during mitochondrial apoptosis of testicular tissue in asthenozoospermia mice, and explore the potential mechanism of the protective effect of acupuncture on reproductive function.
Methods: Thirty C57BL/6 male mice were randomly divided into a blank group, a model group and an acupuncture group, 10 mice in each group. In the model and the acupuncture groups, the intraperitoneal injection of cyclophosphamide (30 mg•kg•d) was delivered for 7 days to prepare the asthenozoospermia model.
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) increasingly impacts firms' risk management and investment decisions. Based on instrumental stakeholder theory, this study uses data from Chinese-listed manufacturing firms from 2013 to 2021 to examine the relationship between ESG disclosure transparency and idiosyncratic risk (IR). Artificial intelligence (AI) intellectual property protection and institutional investor distraction are incorporated as moderating variables in examining this relationship.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study aimed to evaluate the seroprevalence of and persistence of antibodies following vaccination. We recruited 6060 healthy subjects from five provinces of China during 2017-2018. Serum IgG antibodies against pertussis toxin (anti-PT IgG) and filamentous hemagglutinin (anti-FHA IgG), and serum IgA antibodies against pertussis toxin (anti-PT IgA) were measured by ELISA.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn this study, from the perspective of image processing, we propose the iDNA-ITLM model, using a novel data enhance strategy by continuously self-replicating a short DNA sequence into a longer DNA sequence and then embedding it into a high-dimensional matrix to enlarge the receptive field, for identifying DNA methylation sites. Our model consistently outperforms the current state-of-the-art sequence-based DNA methylation site recognition methods when evaluated on 17 benchmark datasets that cover multiple species and include three DNA methylation modifications (4mC, 5hmC, and 6mA). The experimental results demonstrate the robustness and superior performance of our model across these datasets.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To observe the effect of moxibustion with seed-size moxa cones on the Toll-like receptor 4(TLR4)/myeloid differentiation factor 88(MyD88)/nuclear transcription factor-κB(NF-κB) signaling pathway in mice with ulcerative colitis(UC), so as to explore the therapeutic mechanism of moxibustion with seed-size moxa cones on colonic injury in UC.
Methods: Forty male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into blank group, model group, moxibustion group, and western medicine group, with 10 mice in each group. The UC mouse model was established by 3% DSS solution by free drinking for 7 consecutive days.
Vocal cord leukoplakia is clinically described as a white plaque or patch on the vocal cords observed during macroscopic examination, which does not take into account histological features or prognosis. A clinical challenge in managing vocal cord leukoplakia is to assess the potential malignant transformation of the lesion. This study aims to investigate the potential of deep learning (DL) for the simultaneous segmentation and classification of vocal cord leukoplakia using narrow band imaging (NBI) and white light imaging (WLI).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAcupuncture is an integral component of complementary and alternative medicine that has been reported to enhance sperm motility, improve semen quality, and consequently augment male fertility. However, the precise mechanisms of action and the underlying molecular pathways remain unclear. In the present study, we aimed to elucidate the potential mechanisms through which acupuncture improves reproductive function in a mouse model of cyclophosphamide-induced asthenozoospermia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Varicella has not yet been included in the National Immunization Program (NIP) in China, and varicella vaccination strategies vary by region. To determine the optimal varicella vaccination strategy in Shanghai, China, the cost-effectiveness and 5-year costs of 5 immunization scenarios were analyzed.
Methods: A static decision tree-Markov model was developed in 2022 to assess the cost-effectiveness and 5-year costs of voluntary and routine varicella vaccination programs in the 2019 birth cohort in Shanghai from a societal perspective.
Objective: To observe the protective effect of wheat-grain moxibustion on cyclophosphamide (CTX)-induced liver injury in mice, and explore its mechanism based on the nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)-Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1) signaling pathway.
Methods: Twenty-four male CD-1 (ICR) mice were randomly divided into a blank group, a model group, and a moxibustion group, with 8 mice in each group. The mice in the model group and the moxibustion group were intraperitoneally injected with CTX (80 mg/kg) to induce liver injury.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent degenerative joint disease with a lack of effective therapeutic. Chondrocyte ferroptosis contributes to the progression of OA. PUM2 is shown to exacerbate ischemia-reperfusion-induced neuroinflammation by promoting ferroptosis, but its role in OA remains unexplored.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDNA methylation is a critical epigenetic modification involving the addition of a methyl group to the DNA molecule, playing a key role in regulating gene expression without changing the DNA sequence. The main difficulty in identifying DNA methylation sites lies in the subtle and complex nature of methylation patterns, which may vary across different tissues, developmental stages, and environmental conditions. Traditional methods for methylation site identification, such as bisulfite sequencing, are typically labor-intensive, costly, and require large amounts of DNA, hindering high-throughput analysis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe effects of shear degradation on the microstructures and properties of grease were investigated using a planetary ball mill to simulate a bearing shear zone on grease. The microstructure, cone penetration, colloidal stability, rheological properties noise properties, water washout characteristics and low-temperature torque of lithium grease were characterized. The microstructure of the initial lithium grease is a three-dimensional network structure formed by the uniform fibers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiochar has been used for soil Cr(VI) remediation in the last decade due to its enriched redox functional groups and good electrochemical properties. However, the role of soil inherent Fe-bearing minerals during the reduction of Cr(VI) has been largely overlooked. In this study, biochar with different electron-donating capacities (EDCs) was produced at 400 °C (BC400) and 700 °C (BC700), and their performance for Cr(VI) reduction in soils with varied properties (e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFZhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi
February 2024
This study observed the protective effect of resveratrol(Res) on ovarian function in poor ovarian response(POR) mice by regulating the Hippo signaling pathway and explored the potential mechanism of Res in inhibiting ovarian cell apoptosis. Female mice with regular estrous cycles were randomly divided into a blank group, a model group, and low-and high-dose Res groups(20 and 40 mg·kg~(-1)), with 20 mice in each group. The blank group received an equal volume of 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNon-SMC condensin II complex subunit D3 (NCAPD3) is a subunit of the non-structural maintenance of chromosomes condensin II complex, which involves chromosome condensation and segregation during mitosis. NCAPD3 has recently been demonstrated as a crucial oncogenic factor. However, the underlying mechanism of NCAPD3 in prostate cancer (PCa) remains not completely clear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMixed systems of betaines and anionic surfactants can have a significant synergistic effect and greatly reduce the interfacial tension (IFT), which has attracted an extensive amount of attention. However, this synergistic effect requires an anionic surfactant and betaine molecular size matching, which limits the scope of its application. In this work, we studied three mixed systems of sodium dialkyl sulfosuccinate (AOT) and betaines with different sizes by molecular dynamics simulation and an IFT experiment and explored the interfacial behavior and synergistic mechanism of AOT in single and mixed systems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To observe the clinical efficacy of acupotomy combined with metformin hydrochloride tablet for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its effect on serum levels of inflammatory factors.
Methods: A total of 68 patients with T2DM were randomized into an acupotomy group (34 cases, 2 cases dropped out) and a western medication group (34 cases, 2 cases dropped out). Metformin hydrochloride tablet was given orally in the western medication group, 0.
The psychosocial underpinnings of vaccine hesitancy are complex. Research is needed to pinpoint the exact reasons why people hesitate to vaccinate themselves or their children against vaccine-preventable diseases. One possible reason are concerns that arise from a misunderstanding of vaccine science.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Pneumococcal vaccines are effective in preventing pneumococcal diseases in adults. The evaluation of the antibodies persistence to the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) could provide evidence on PPV23 revaccination.
Research Design And Methods: Adults aged ≥ 60 years were selected and vaccinated with PPV23 in Shanghai, and followed up for 5 years with blood samples collection of a 1-year interval.
Wind is one of the most prevalent environmental forces entraining plants to develop various mechano-responses, collectively called thigmomorphogenesis. Largely unknown is how plants transduce these versatile wind force signals downstream to nuclear events and to the development of thigmomorphogenic phenotype or anemotropic response. To identify molecular components at the early steps of the wind force signaling, two mechanical signaling-related phosphoproteins, identified from our previous phosphoproteomic study of Arabidopsis touch response, mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1 (MKK1) and 2 (MKK2), were selected for performing in planta TurboID (ID)-based quantitative proximity-labeling (PL) proteomics.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhotoexcitation of natural semiconductor Fe(III) minerals has been proven to generate Fe(II), but the photogeneration of Fe(II) in Fe-rich surface soil as well as its role in the redox biogeochemistry of Cr(VI) remains poorly understood. In this work, we confirmed the generation of Fe(II) in soil by solar irradiation and proposed a new mechanism for the natural reductive detoxification of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) in surface soil. The kinetic results showed that solar irradiation promoted the reduction of Cr(VI) in Fe-rich soils, while a negligible Cr(VI) reduction was observed in the dark.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEntropy (Basel)
September 2023
The Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, situated within China's Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, significantly influence and are impacted by their air quality conditions. Rapid urbanization, high population density, and air pollution from diverse factors present challenges, making the health of the atmospheric environment in these regions a research focal point. This study offers three key contributions: (1) It applied an interpretable dynamic Bayesian network (DBN) to construct a dynamic causal model of air quality in Hong Kong and Macao, amidst complex, unstable, multi-dimensional, and uncertain factors over time.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn this paper, the interfacial properties of extended surfactants with different oxypropylene (PO) groups were comprehensively investigated by using interfacial dilational rheology. The differences in molecular orientation, spatial configuration, and relaxation process were compared at the gas-water interface and oil-water interface. The influences of the PO groups on the interface viscoelasticity were analyzed, providing important theoretical support for the wide application of extended surfactants.
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