Does Smoking Weaken the Immune System: A Narrative Review

Smoking has a complex impact on the immune system, affecting both innate and adaptive immunity. It can exacerbate pathogenic immune responses and attenuate defensive immunity, leading to a higher susceptibility to infections and certain diseases. The chemicals in cigarette smoke, such as nicotine and carbon monoxide, can alter immune cell functions and inflammatory responses. Smoking can also have long-term effects on the immune system, with some changes persisting even after quitting [1]. According to a Penn Medicine Physician, the Medical Oncologist Dr. David Porter, “People who are smokers tend to get sicker from infections”, “It may be that smoking impacts the immune system’s ability to respond appropriately”. Thus, such individuals within smoking exposure history might be considered as immunocompromised due to the altered and weakened immune system. Cigarette smoking is a prevalent habit with far-reaching health implications. Among its many adverse effects, smoking significantly alters the immune system’s functionality [1].

Synchronization of general discrete Lur'e systems

This paper studies a master-slave type of synchronization systems for a general form of two discrete Lur＇e systems. Some simple necessary and/or sufficient conditions for synchronization are derived. They are basically algebraic conditions, and are convement to be applied in engineering applications.

The El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation cycle simulated by the climate system model of Chinese Academy of Sciences

On the basis of more than 200-year control run, the performance of the climate system model of Chinese Academy of Sciences （CAS-ESM-C） in simulating the E1 Nifio-Southern Oscillation （ENSO） cycle is evalu- ated, including the onset, development and decay of the ENSO. It is shown that, the model can reasonably simulate the annual cycle and interannual variability of sea surface temperature （SST） in the tropical Pacif- ic, as well as the seasonal phase-locking of the ENSO. The model also captures two prerequisites for the E1 Nino onset, i.e., a westerly anomaly and a warm SST anomaly in the equatorial western Pacific. Owing to too strong forcing from an extratropical meridional wind, however, the westerly anomaly in this region is largely overestimated. Moreover, the simulated thermocline is much shallower with a weaker slope. As a result, the warm SST anomaly from the western Pacific propagates eastward more quickly, leading to a faster develop- ment of an E1 Nino. During the decay stage, owing to a stronger E1Nino in the model, the secondary Gill-type response of the tropical atmosphere to the eastern Pacific warming is much stronger, thereby resulting in a persistent easterly anomaly in the western Pacific. Meanwhile, a cold anomaly in the warm pool appears as a result of a lifted thermocline via Ekman pumping. Finally, an E1 Nino decays into a La Nina through their interactions. In addition, the shorter period and larger amplitude of the ENSO in the model can be attribut- ed to a shallower thermocline in the equatorial Pacific, which speeds up the zonal redistribution of a heat content in the upper ocean.

Exponential synchronization of chaotic Lur'e systems with time-varying delay via sampled-data control

In this paper, we study the exponential synchronization of chaotic Lur＇e systems with time-varying delays via sampled-data control by using sector nonlinearties. In order to make full use of information about sampling intervals and interval time-varying delays, new Lyapunov-Krasovskii functionals with triple integral terms are introduced. Based on the convex combination technique, two kinds of synchronization criteria are derived in terms of linear matrix inequal- ities, which can be efficiently solved via standard numerical software. Finally, three numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the less conservatism and effectiveness of the proposed results.

Some new criteria for lag synchronization of chaotic Lur'e systems by replacing variables control

Some new criteria for the chaotic lag synchronization are proposed. At first,lag synchronization scheme for identical master-slave Lur‘ e systems by replacing variables control and the relevant error system are given, and the relations between absolute stability of the error system and the chaotic lag synchronization are described. Then, based on a quadratic Lyapunov function, two new Lur‘ e criteria for the above chaotic lag synchronization are proved. Four corresponding frequency domain criteria are further derived by means of Meyer-Kalman-Yacubovia Lemma. These frequency domain criteria are applied to analyze the lag synchronization of general master-slave Chua's circuits so that some ranges of the parameters in which the master-slave Chua's circuits achieve chaotic lag synchronization by replacing single-variable control are attained. Finally, some examples are given to verify the theoretical results.

E2F transcription factors and digestive system malignancies:How much do we know?

The E2F proteins comprise a family of 8 members that function as transcription factors. They are key targets of the retinoblastoma protein (RB) and were initially divided into groups of activators and repressors. Accumulating data suggest that there is no specific role for each individual E2F member. Instead, each E2F can exert a variety of cellular effects, some of which represent opposing ones. For instance, specific E2Fs can activate transcription and repression, promote or hamper cell proliferation, augment or inhibit apoptosis, all being dependent on the cellular context. This complexity reflects the importance that these transcription factors have on a cell’s fate. Thus, delineating the specific role for each E2F member in specific malignancies, although not easy, is a challenging and continuously pursued task, especially in view of potential E2F targeted therapies. Therefore, several reviews are continuously trying to evaluate available data on E2F status in various malignancies. Such reviews have attempted to reach a consensus, often in the simplistic form of oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes for the E2Fs. However they frequently miss spatial and temporal alterations of these factors during tumor development, which should also be considered in conjunction with the status of the regulatory networks that these factors participate in. In the current ‘‘Letter to the Editor’’, we comment on the flaws, misinterpretations and omissions in one such review article published recently in the World Journal of Gastroenterology regarding the role of E2Fs in digestive system malignancies.

RESEARCH OF B2B E-COMMERCE SYSTEM MODEL BASED ON WEB SERVICE

B2B E Commerce is one of the most potential electronic commerce forms at present. But since traditional B2 B E Commerce system lacks an unified standard and solution of basic architectur e a nd interface, it has many shortcomings such as poor reusability and poor extensi bility. In order to solve the problem, combined with Web Service technology, a B 2B E Commerce system model based on Web Service is proposed and analyzed. The m odel can combine relatively independent Web Service on Intranet and Internet by constructing core application program. As a part of supply chain, it can also pr ovide a standard interface for other applications such as ERP/CRM/SCM, etc. Th er efore, B2B E Commerce system with this form is easy for development, integratio n and maintenance. Finally, a solution of B2B E Commerce system based on Web Se rvice is propounded by introducing an instance.

Robust networked H_∞ synchronization of nonidentical chaotic Lur'e systems

We mainly investigate the robust networked H~ synchronization problem of nonidentical chaotic Lur＇e systems. In the design of the synchronization scheme, some network characteristics, such as nonuniform sampling, transmission- induced delays, and data packet dropouts, are considered. The parameters of master-slave chaotic Lur＇e systems often allow differences. The sufficient condition in terms of linear matrix inequality （LMI） is obtained to guarantee the dissipative synchronization of nonidentical chaotic Lur＇e systems in network environments. A numerical example is given to illustrate the validity of the proposed method.

Synchronization of chaotic Lur'e systems with delayed feedback control using deadzone nonlinearity

In this paper we present a synchronization method for chaotic Lur＇e systems by constructing a new piecewise Lyapunov function. Using a delayed feedback control scheme, a delay-dependent stability criterion is derived for the synchronization of chaotic systems that are represented by Lur＇e systems with deadzone nonlinearity. Based on the Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional and by using some properties of the nonlinearity, a new delay-dependent stabilization condition for synchronization is obtained via linear matrix inequality （LMI） formulation. The criterion is less conservative than existing ones, and it will be verified through a numerical example.

A Load-balance and EEDF based strategy for reducing transmission delay of VoIP services in IEEE 802.16e system

To decrease the transmission delay of uplink voice over IP(VoIP)services in IEEE 802.16e sys-tem,a novel strategy which includes a load-balance algorithm and an extended earliest deadline first(EEDF)scheduling algorithm is proposed.Subsequently,this paper analyzes the performance of the pro-posed strategy in terms of transmission delay of VoIP services,system capacity,throughput and compati-bility with IEEE 802 .16e standard.Finally,simulation experiments are carried out to verify the improve-ment of the proposed strategy.The simulation results match well with the theoretical analysis and showthat the proposed strategy reduces the transmission delay of uplink VoIP services and improves the capaci-ty and throughput.These improvements are remarkable especially when the load of system is heavy.

Exponential synchronization of stochastic impulsive perturbed chaotic Lur'e systems with time-varying delay and parametric uncertainty

This paper is devoted to investigating the scheme of exponential synchronization for uncertain stochastic impulsive perturbed chaotic Lur＇e systems. The parametric uncertainty is assumed to be norm bounded. Based on the Lyapunov function method, time-varying delay feedback control technique and a modified Halanay inequality for stochastic differential equations, several sufficient conditions are presented to guarantee the exponential synchronization in mean square between two identical uncertain chaotic Lur＇e systems with stochastic and impulsive perturbations. These conditions are expressed in terms of linear matrix inequalities （LMIs）, which can easily be checked by utilizing the numerically efficient Matlab LMI toolbox. It is worth pointing out that the approach developed in this paper can provide a more general framework for the synchronization of multi-perturbation chaotic Lur＇e systems, which reflects a more realistic dynamics. Finally, a numerical example is provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Process of Security Assurance Technique for Application Functional Logic in E-Commerce Systems

Security practices such as Audits that often focus on penetration testing are performed to find flaws in some types of vulnerability & use tools, which have been tailored to resolve certain risks based on code errors, code conceptual assumptions bugs, etc. Most existing security practices in e-Commerce are dealt with as an auditing activity. They may have policies of security, which are enforced by auditors who enable a particular set of items to be reviewed, but also fail to find vulnerabilities, which have been established in compliance with application logic. In this paper, we will investigate the problem of business logic vulnerability in the component-based rapid development of e-commerce applications while reusing design specification of component. We propose secure application functional processing Logic Security technique for component-based e-commerce application, based on security requirement of e-business process and security assurance logical component behaviour specification approach to formulize and design a solution for business logic vulnerability phenomena.

Carbon Sequestration in Soil Humic Substances Under Long-Term Fertilization in a Wheat-Maize System from North China

The changes in humic substances （HS） is fundamental in detecting soil carbon sequestration mechanisms in natural and cultivated environments. Based on a long-term trial, the amounts of water dissolved substances （WSS）, humic acid （HA）, fulvic acid （FA） and humin （HU） were determined to explore the impact of long-term fertilization on HS. Increases in the amounts of WSS, HA, FA and HU were significant different among the treatments with manure. A significant correlation was found between the increased soil organic carbon （SOC） and HS （R^2=0.98, P〈0.01）. The change in the E4/E6 ratio was significantly correlated with the increased SOC （R2=0.88, P〈0.01）, HA （R^2=0.91, P〈0.01）, FA （R^2=0.91, P〈0.01） and HU （R^2=0.88, P〈0.01）. The cluster was mainly divided into two parts as manure fertilization and inorganic fertilization, based on the increases in HA, FA and HU. These results suggest that long term fertilization with manure favours carbon sequestration in HS and is mainly stabilized as HU, while the HA becomes more aliphatic. We conclude that increases in SOC can be linked to changes in the molecular characteristics of HS fractions under long term fertilization.

E2F transcription factors and digestive system malignancies: How much do we know?

E2F family of transcription factors regulates various cellular functions related to cell cycle and apoptosis. Its individual members have traditionally been classified into activators and repressors, based on in vitro studies. However their contribution in human cancer is more complicated and difficult to predict. We review current knowledge on the expression of E2Fs in digestive system malignancies and its clinical implications for patient prognosis and treatment. E2F1, the most extensively studied member and the only one with prognostic value, exhibits a tumor-suppressing activity in esophageal, gastric and colorectal adenocarcinoma, and in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), whereas in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma may function as a tumorpromoter. In the latter malignancies, E2F1 immunohistochemical expression has been correlated with higher tumor grade and worse patient survival, whereas in esophageal, gastric and colorectal adenocarcinomas is a marker of increased patient survival. E2F2 has only been studied in colorectal cancer, where its role is not considered significant. E2F4's role in colorectal, gastric and hepatic carcinogenesis is tumor-promoting. E2F8 is strongly upregulated in human HCC, thus possibly contributing to hepatocarcinogenesis. Adenoviral transfer of E2F as gene therapy to sensitize pancreatic cancer cells for chemotherapeutic agents has been used in experimental studies. Other therapeutic strategies are yet to be developed, but it appears that targeted approaches using E2F-agonists or antagonists should take into account the tissue-dependent function of each E2F member. Further understanding of E2Fs' contribution in cellular functions in vivo would help clarify their role in carcinogenesis.

Delay-Dependent Absolute Stability ofUncertain Lur′e Systems with Time-Delays^1）

This paper is concerned with delay dependent absolute stability for a class of uncertain Lur′e systems with multiple time-delays. By using a descriptor model transformation of the sys-tem and by applying a recent result on bounding of cross products of vectors, a new type of Lya-punov-Krasovskii functional is constructed. Based on the new functional, delay-dependent suffi-cient conditions for absolute stability are derived in terms of linear matrix inequalities. These con-ditions do not require any parameter tuning, and can be solved numerically using the software LMI Lab. A numerical example is presented which shows that the proposed method can substantiallyimprove the delay bound for absolute stability of Lur′e system with time-delays, compared to theexisting ones.

Government Responsibility in New Rural Cooperative Medical Care System from the Perspective of Equity and Efficiency

Equity and efficiency,as two essential parts of social security,always influence construction of China's new rural cooperative medical care system.The new rural cooperative medical care system is a rural social security system particularly intended to make it more affordable for the rural poor.It is a multi-channel fundraising system with fund of comprehensive arrangement for serious disease composed by the government,collectives and individuals.Since its implementation,it has made considerable achievements,but there are still many apparent and hidden problems.Through analyzing existing problems in the implementation of new rural cooperative medical care system,from the perspective of equity and efficiency,it reached the conclusion that government should take corresponding responsibilities.At the same time of constantly increasing efficiency,it is recommended to attach importance to the equity,so as to realize the objective of improving the security level of new rural cooperative medical care system.

Effects of dietary vitamin E on male reproductive system

Vitamin E is known as important antioxidant to protect the reproductive system. The free radicals are continuously produced in last few years due to metabolic and nutritional deficiencies. These free radicals are responsible for the production of oxidative stress in animal bodies. This production of extensive amount of oxidative stress caused the detrimental effects on the sperm and various other male parameters. This imbalance between the antioxidants and oxidative stress, leads to the condition of infertility in male. Antioxidants play an important role for eliminating of these free radicals. Vitamin E is one of the best antioxidants for the removal of oxidative stress in male reproductive system. Its use increases the reproductive functions and efficiency of male reproductive system. The deficiency of this vitamin leads to degeneration of germinal epithelium and Leydig cells in seminiferous tubules. The use of selenium and vitamin E has the synergistic effects on the male reproductive system. The objective of this review was to collect the beneficial roles of this vitamin along selenium on reproductive system of birds and different animals. This review will also collect the different doses along the beneficial roles on different parameters of male reproductive system.

On Delay-dependent and Delay-derivative-dependent Stability and Stabilization for Lur’e Systems with Slowvarying Delay

This note is concerned with the absolutestability for time-varying delay Lur’e system withsector-bounded nonlinearity. Improved delay-dependentand delay-derivative-dependent stability criteria areobtained in the form of linear matrix inequalities (LMIs)by constructing a modified augmented Lyapunov-Krasovskii (LK) functional without applying the modeltransformation or the bounding techniques for crossterms. Thus, the presented delay-dependent criteria areless conservative than those in the literature. Moreover,state feedback stabilizing controllers based on theproposed stability criteria are designed. Numericalexample demonstrates the effectiveness and superiorityof the proposed method.