ObjectiveThe present study aimed to investigate alterations in white matter microstructure and spontaneous neural activity in male college smokers, and to further explore their associations with nicotine dependence. Given that adolescence and early adulthood represent critical periods for brain maturation, particularly for white matter development, understanding the neural correlates of smoking behavior during this stage is of substantial importance for both neuroscience and public health. MethodsA total of 115 male undergraduate students were initially recruited for this study. After quality control and exclusion procedures, 52 male college smokers and 42 demographically matched healthy non-smokers were included in the final analysis. All participants underwent multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), including diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI). White matter fiber tracts were reconstructed using the automated fiber quantification (AFQ) method, which enables precise identification and quantification of major fiber bundles. Eighteen major white matter tracts were segmented for each participant. Along the core trajectory of each tract, 100 equidistant nodes were sampled. Fractional anisotropy (FA) was calculated at each node to assess white matter microstructural integrity, while amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) was computed to evaluate spontaneous neural activity within white matter tracts. Between-group differences in FA and ALFF were assessed using two-sample t-tests, with appropriate corrections applied for multiple comparisons. Furthermore, Pearson correlation analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between imaging-derived metrics (FA and ALFF values in regions showing significant group differences) and nicotine dependence severity, as measured by the Fagerström test for nicotine dependence (FTND). ResultsCompared with healthy non-smokers, male college smokers exhibited significantly increased FA values in several white matter tracts, including the left thalamic radiation, right corticospinal tract, forceps major of the corpus callosum, left uncinate fasciculus, and right arcuate fasciculus. These findings suggest altered microstructural organization or increased directional coherence within these pathways. In addition, smokers demonstrated significantly elevated ALFF values in the forceps major, right uncinate fasciculus, and left arcuate fasciculus, indicating enhanced spontaneous neural activity in these white matter regions. Correlation analyses revealed that FA values in the left thalamic radiation and right corticospinal tract were negatively correlated with FTND scores, suggesting that higher levels of nicotine dependence were associated with reduced microstructural integrity or altered fiber organization in these regions. In contrast, ALFF values in the forceps major and right uncinate fasciculus were positively correlated with FTND scores, indicating that greater nicotine dependence was associated with increased spontaneous neural activity in specific white matter pathways. ConclusionThe present study provides evidence that male college smokers exhibit distinct alterations in both white matter microstructure and functional activity. These abnormalities are not uniformly distributed but rather localized to specific fiber tracts implicated in sensorimotor processing, interhemispheric communication, and higher-order cognitive and emotional regulation. Importantly, the observed associations between imaging metrics and nicotine dependence severity suggest that these structural and functional alterations may reflect neurobiological mechanisms underlying addiction. The combination of AFQ-based tract profiling and multimodal MRI offers a sensitive approach for detecting subtle changes along white matter pathways, highlighting its potential utility in identifying neuroimaging biomarkers of nicotine dependence. Overall, these findings indicate that smoking during early adulthood may disrupt ongoing white matter maturation, potentially leading to long-term consequences for brain function. This study provides novel insights into the neural basis of nicotine dependence and underscores the importance of early intervention and prevention strategies targeting young smokers.

Objective This study reports on the obligatory parasitism of water mites Arrenurus sp. on Anopheles messeae at the Manzhouli Port, Inner Mongolia, China. Methods Duing July 2024, a survey on the mosquito diversity was conducted at the Manzhouli Port. Captured mosquitoes and their ectoparasites were identified to species level. Results A total of 1840 adult mosquitoes were collected, representing species from three genera: Culex(Cx. modestus, Cx. pipiens pallens), Aedes(Ae. dorsalis, Ae. flavidorsalis, Ae. flavescens), and Anopheles (An. messeae). Among all the mosqutioes specimens,3 out of 150 captured An. messeae were found to carry ectoparasitic mites, with number of 2,4,27 mites separately. Morphological and molecular identification reached the same result as water mites(Hydrachnidiae, Hydracrina). COI gene sequence showed 94% similarity with the closest species Arrenurus truncatellus. Conlusions Literature review suggests water mites are host-specific parasitism of mosquito species and herein with the first record of Arrenurus sp. parasiting on An. Messeae in the most high-latitude region globally.

Objective:To investigate immunotherapy effects and mechanism of BCG and recombinant BCG(rBCG)with c-di-AMP as adjuvant on melanoma in mice model.Methods:Melanoma mice model was established by B16F10 cell subcutaneous injec-tion in groin,and treated with 1×106 CFU of BCG and rBCG by adjacent injection of subcutaneous tumor for 3 times,respectively.Survival of melanotic mice,tumor growth and metastasis were observed.Tumor tissues of mice were isolated to prepare cell suspen-sion,and proportion of immune cells were detected by flow cytometry.Transcriptional levels of immune-related genes in tumor tissues were detected by qRT-PCR.Results:Both BCG and rBCG immunotherapy could significantly inhibit growth in melanoma mice and prolong survival time of mice.rBCG showed better inhibition on metastasis than BCG.Both strains significantly reduced proportion of M2-type macrophages and myeloid-derived suppressor cell associated with tumor growth and metastasis.Both two strains promoted infiltration of lymphocytes in tumor tissues,and rBCG significantly increased proportion of B cells in tumor.BCG immunotherapy upregulated transcription levels of metastasis-related cytokines,while rBCG therapy had no effects on transcriptions of these genes.Conclusion:Both BCG and rBCG have immunotherapeutic effects on melanotic mice,and rBCG with c-di-AMP as adjuvant shows better inhibition on tumor metastasis than BCG,which mechanism was related to regulation of immune response in tumor tissues.

Aim To establish the pyroptosis model of rat chondrocytes induced by tumor necrosis factor α(TNF-α)in order to study the effect of lysine acetyl-transferase 7(KAT7)on pyroptosis of chondrocytes.Methods Chondrocytes of rat knee joint were isolated by type Ⅱ collagenase digestion,and were identified by toluidine blue staining and Col Ⅱ immunofluorescence.CCK-8 was used to evaluate cell viability.Western blot was used to detect the expression of pyroptosis-related proteins NLRP3,GSDMD,caspase-8 and KAT7 in cells intervened with TNF-α,adenovirus overexpression of KAT7(KAT7-oe)and KAT7 inhibitor WM-3835.The microstructure of the cells was observed by scanning e-lectron microscopy.Pyroptosis was detected by TUNEL staining,and the expression of pyroptosis-related pro-tein and KAT7 was detected by immunofluorescence.Results Compared with the empty virus group,KAT7-oe inhibited cell viability,promoted the expression of pyroptosis-related proteins,and TNF-α enhanced this effect.At the same time,the expression of KAT7 and pyroptosis-related proteins in the TNF-α stimulation group increased,and WM-3835 reduced the related proteins expression.Electron microscopy showed that KAT7-oe caused cell swelling,deformation,membrane perforation and rupture,while WM-3835 could restore cell morphology.TUNEL staining and immunofluores-cence results also confirmed that KAT7-oe induced chondrocyte pyroptosis,and WM-3835 could down-reg-ulate the fluorescence of pyroptosis-related proteins.Conclusions The expression of KAT7 increases in rat chondrocyte pyroptosis model,and the intervention of KAT7 expression affects signal molecules related to py-roptosis pathway,suggesting that KAT7 may be related to chondrocyte pyroptosis.

Aim To explore the protective effect of the isochroman compound Asperisochroman B(AB)on oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation(OGD/R)injury of neurons based on the PI3K/AKT/Foxo1 path-way and to reveal the related mechanism.Methods Primary neurons were cultured and the OGD/R model was constructed.The primary neurons were divided in-to the blank control group,OGD/R group,and AB low,medium,and high concentration(3,10,30 μmol·L-1)groups.The effects of AB on primary neurons were determined by CCK-8 assay,lactate dehydrogen-ase(LDH)release assay,and Hoechst 33342 stai-ning.The expression levels of PI3K,AKT,and Foxo1-related proteins were detected by Western blot.After intervention with the PI3K inhibitor(LY294002)and re-modeling and intervention with high concentra-tion of AB(30 μmol·L-1),the expression of PI3K/Foxo1 pathway-related proteins was detected by West-ern blot.Results Compared with the OGD/R group,AB could significantly increase the cell survival rate of primary neurons and reduce the release of LDH.The results of Hoechst 33342 and immunofluorescence stai-ning showed that AB reduced apoptosis after OGD/R injury.Western blot results showed that compared with the OGD/R group,after AB intervention,the expres-sion levels of Bcl-2 and NeuN proteins in neurons sig-nificantly increased(P＜0.01),and the expression level of Bax protein significantly decreased(P＜0.01).At the same time,it upregulated the expres-sion levels of p-AKT and PI3K proteins,promoted Foxo1 phosphorylation,and downregulated the expres-sion of Foxo1.Compared with the high-dose AB group,LY294002 could inhibit the changes of the a-bove indicators and reverse the protective effect of AB on OGD/R-injured primary neurons.Conclusions AB can alleviate oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygen-ation-induced neuronal injury,and its mechanism may be related to the activation of the PI3K/AKT/Foxo1 signaling pathway.

Objective:To investigate the value of nomogram model based on CT features in differentiating ectopic pancreas (EP) from gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) with a long diameter less than 3 cm.Methods:This study was a case-control study. The clinical and imaging data of 43 patients with EP and 90 patients with GIST confirmed by pathology in the Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou Medical University from August 2013 to March 2024 were retrospectively analyzed. Preoperative CT images were analyzed to obtain qualitative features (number of lesions, location, morphology, growth pattern, borders, cystic degeneration, calcification, ulceration, catheter sign, central umbilication) and quantitative features (lesion long diameter, short diameter, long/short diameter, lesion and normal pancreas arterial-phase and venous-phase CT values, and enhancement ratio). Statistical analyses, including independent sample t-tests, Mann-Whitney U tests, χ2 tests, and Fisher exact tests, were performed to compare CT characteristics between the two groups. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to obtain independent predictors to identify the two groups, to establish a joint model, and to draw a nomogram. The discriminative performance of the independent predictors and the combined model was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, while calibration curves were used to evaluate model fit. Results:The differences in age, location, morphology, border, catheter sign, central umbilication, short diameter, long/short diameter, arteriovenous phase enhancement CT value and arteriovenous phase enhancement ratio were statistically significant between the EP group and the GIST group (all P<0.05). The logistic analysis showed that the differences in age ( OR=0.920, 95% CI 0.885-0.956, P<0.001), border ( OR=5.994, 95% CI 2.111-17.022, P=0.001), long/short diameter ( OR=7.820, 95% CI 1.841-33.224, P=0.005), and venous phase enhancement ratio ( OR=8.847, 95% CI 1.103-70.972, P=0.040) were the independent predictors for distinguishing EP from GIST, and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) were 0.782 (95% CI 0.698-0.866), 0.684 (95% CI 0.600-0.767), 0.705 (95% CI 0.607-0.803), and 0.693 (95% CI 0.605-0.781), respectively. Combined age, border, long diameter/short diameter and venous phase enhancement ratio were plotted in a nomogram with an AUC of 0.881 (95% CI 0.817-0.945), sensitivity and specificity of 74.4% and 93.3%, respectively. The calibration curve demonstrated a strong agreement between predicted and actual probabilities (Hosmer-Lemeschow test, P=0.267). Conclusions:CT imaging reveals significant differences between EP and small GISTs (<3 cm). EP is more likely when patients are younger and lesions exhibit indistinct borders, a higher long-to-short diameter ratio, and greater venous-phase enhancement. The nomogram derived from CT features provides a valuable tool for differentiating EP from GIST.

Electroencephalogram(EEG)refers to the electrical activity generated by neuronal discharges in the human brain,conventionallyrecorded on the scalp of the brain.EEG technology enables the non-invasive detection of electrophysiological activity in neuronal populations within the cerebral cortex,capturing millisecond-level changes in brain potentials with high temporal resolution.In recent years,lots of international researchers have leveraged EEG technology to investigate smoking addiction and further explore the millisecond-level electrophysiological changes in the brains of smokers.This review synthesizes recent advances in resting-state EEG and task-evoked event-related potential research among smokers,summarizing the electrophysiological activity changes associated with smoking addiction.Future researches will employ both longitudinal tracking and machine learning algorithms to further reveal the relationship between EEG signatures and smoking behaviors,thereby providing a scientific foundation for early intervention and treatment strategies targeting smoking addiction.

Objective To investigate the risk factors of hemodynamic instability after carotid artery stenting by meta-analysis.Methods Ten databases were searched:PubMed,ProQuest,ScienceDirect,Embase,Cochrane Library,Web of Science,China Knowledge Network,Wanfang Data,VIP Information Database,and China Biomedical Database.The search date was from inception until 2 February 2024,and meta-analysis was performed using Stata 16.0 statistical software.Results A total of 27 studies with 4199 subjects and 22 influencing factors were included.The studies showed a 37.4％(95％CI 30.3％-44.8％)incidence of haemodynamic instability after carotid stenting,Meta-analysis determined that age＞60 years(P＜0.001),hypertension(P＜0.001),calcified plaque(P＜0.001),stenosis＞70％(P=0.008),eccentric plaque(P=0.002),distance from the largest stenosis to the carotid bifurcation≤ 10 mm(P＜0.001),stenosis involvement of the balloon or bifurcation(P＜0.001),balloon post-dilation(P=0.003),open-loop stenting(P＜0.001),dilated balloon diameter≥5 mm(P=0.002),repeat balloon dilation(P=0.011)and balloon dilation pressure≥8 atm(P＜0.001)are risk factors for intraoperative and postoperative haemodynamic instability in patients undergoing carotid artery stenting surgery.Statin use was a protective factor(P＜0.001).Conclusions Medical staff working in the clinic should assess the patient's condition preoperatively,identify risk factors that may lead to haemodynamic instability,and avoid unnecessary intraoperative stimulation of patients who are already in a high-risk state.Reduce postoperative clinical complications in patients with carotid artery stenosis and improve patient recovery.

Objective To establish a reversed-phase HPLC method for determining three stereoisomers in baloxavir marboxil and provide a basis for the quality specification of baloxavir marboxil.Methods The chromatographic column was CHIRALPAK IC-3(4.6 mm × 150 mm,3 μm),The mobile phase was acetonitrile-0.1％formic acid aqueous solution-isopropanol(35:50:15).The column temperature was 40 ℃.The flow rate was 0.5 mL·min-1.The injection volume was 10 μL.The detection wavelength was 259 nm.Result The isomer peaks were completely separated from the principal component peak.The detection limits for stereoisomers 1,2 and 3 were 0.024 7,0.038 7,0.038 1 μg·mL-1 respectively.The quantitation limits for stereoisomers 1,2 and 3 were 0.049 4,0.077 3,0.076 1 μg·mL-1 respectively.There were good linear relationships between the concentrations and peak area within the ranges of the study,and the linearity concentration ranges of stereoisomers 1,2 and 3 were 0.049 5-0.989 0 μg·mL-1,0.051 6-1.031 0 μg·mL-1,0.050 8-1.015 0 μg·mL-1 respectively.The linear correlation coefficients were 0.999 4.The recovery was 92.28％-103.90％.The sample solution was stable in 48 h at room temperature.Conclusion The method is accurate and reliable for determining stereoisomers in baloxavir marboxil,and provide a guideline of quality standards of baloxavir marboxil and safety evalution.

Aim To investigate the protective effect of Gualou Guizhi granules(GLGZG)on neuronal injury induced by LPS-activated microglia based on Notch signaling pathway.Methods LPS-activated microglia were co-cultured with neurons to construct neuron inju-ry models,and the cells were divided into the control group,model group,Notch inhibitor(DAPT)group,GLGZG(50,100,200 mg·L-1)group,DAPT+100 mg·L-1GLGZG group.After intervention,the activity of HT22 cells was detected by CCK-8 method,and rel-ative mRNA expression was detected by real-time PCR.The relative protein expression was detected by Western blot.Results Compared with the model group,after GLGZG intervention,the cell activity was significantly improved,GLGZG decreased IL-6,IL-12,Bax,Notch 1,caspase-3,Delta-1,NICD,RBPSUH,HES1 expression,and increased Bcl-2 expression(P＜0.05).Compared with the model group,the NICD,RBPSUH and HES1 mRNA and protein expressions significantly decreased after DAPT treatment(P＜0.05),and there was no superposition effect with GLG-ZG.Conclusion GLGZG may play a neuroprotective role by inhibiting inflammatory factors and apoptosis,and inhibiting Notch signaling pathway.