Molecular epidemiological study on tick-borne pathogens in Qinghai Province, Northwestern China.

Recently, there has been a continuous stream of reports on emerging tick-borne pathogens affecting humans. Qinghai Province, located in the northweastern region, is one of China's major pastoral areas, providing a suitable environment for ticks' survival and transmitting tick-borne pathogens. Here, we collected 560 free-living and parasitic ticks from 11 locations in Qinghai Province using the flag-drag method or tweezers, identifying them as belonging to 4 species of ticks.

Involvement of CHRNA6 in the Immune Response in Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma and its Potential as a Drug Target for the Disease.

Background: Lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) is a subtype of lung cancer with a poor prognosis and limited treatment options. Previous studies show that some components of the cholinergic pathway may play important roles in the tumorigenesis of lung cancer, including LUSC.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate the involvement of cholinergic genes in immune infiltration in LUSC, and identify the key genes in the pathway and analyze their potential as targets for LUSC treatment and novel drugs.

Computational assessment of herbal medicine-derived compounds as potential inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 main protease.

Since the main protease (Mpro) is crucial for the COVID-19 virus replication and transcription, searching for Mpro inhibitors is one possible treatment option. In our study, 258 small molecules were collected from lung-related herbal medicines, and their structures were optimized with the B3LYP-D3/6-31G* method. After the molecular docking with Mpro, we selected the top 20 compounds for the further geometry optimization with the larger basis sets.

Photocatalytic-induced bubble-propelled isotropic g-CN-coated carbon microsphere micromotors for dynamic removal of organic pollutants.

An isotropic bubble-propelled graphitic carbon nitride coated carbon microsphere (g-CN@CMS) micromotor that displays efficient self-propulsion powered by visible light irradiation and offers effective dynamic removal of organic pollutants for environmental applications is described. Its morphology, structure, and composition were systematically characterized, confirming the successful coating of g-CN on the CMS surface and a core-shell structure. The photocatalytic-induced bubble propulsion of g-CN@CMS micromotors essentially stems from the asymmetrical photocatalytic redox reactions of g-CN on the symmetrical surface of micromotors under visible light illumination.