Association of mental disorders with sepsis: a bidirectional Mendelian randomization study.

Background: Substantial research evidence supports the correlation between mental disorders and sepsis. Nevertheless, the causal connection between a particular psychological disorder and sepsis remains unclear. Methods: For investigating the causal relationships between mental disorders and sepsis, genetic variants correlated with mental disorders, including anorexia nervosa (AN), attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), bipolar disorder (BD), major depressive disorder (MDD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder (PD), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), schizophrenia (SCZ), and tourette syndrome (TS), were all extracted from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium (PGC). The causal estimates and direction between these mental disorders and sepsis were evaluated employing a two-sample bidirectional MR strategy. The inverse variance weighted (IVW) method was the primary approach utilized. Various sensitivity analyses were performed to confirm the validity of the causal effect. Meta-analysis, multivariable MR, and mediation MR were conducted to ensure the credibility and depth of this research. Results: The presence of AN was in relation to a greater likelihood of sepsis (OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.02-1.14; p = 0.013). A meta-analysis including validation cohorts supported this observation (OR 1.06, 95% CI 1.02-1.09). None of the investigated mental disorders appeared to be impacted when sepsis was set as the exposure factor. Even after adjusting for confounding factors, AN remained statistically significant (OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.02-1.15; p = 0.013). Mediation analysis indicated N-formylmethionine levels (with a mediated proportion of 7.47%), cystatin D levels (2.97%), ketogluconate Metabolism (17.41%) and N10-formyl-tetrahydrofolate biosynthesis (20.06%) might serve as mediators in the pathogenesis of AN-sepsis. Conclusion: At the gene prediction level, two-sample bidirectional MR analysis revealed that mental disorder AN had a causal association with an increased likelihood of sepsis. In addition, N-formylmethionine levels, cystatin D levels, ketogluconate metabolism and N10-formyl-tetrahydrofolate biosynthesis may function as potential mediators in the pathophysiology of AN-sepsis. Our research may contribute to the investigation of novel therapeutic strategies for mental illness and sepsis.

Passenger muscle responses in emergency braking events with reclined seating.

Emergency braking can generate forward displacement that may influence the effectiveness of protection in collisions, especially for passengers. The development of automated vehicles has enabled the diversification and rationalization of sitting positions, including reclined seating. However, the passenger response in pre-crash scenarios in reclined seating differs from that in standard seating, which poses different requirements for biofidelic human body models (HBMs) to evaluate passenger injuries in collisions. This study conducted emergency braking trials in vehicles at an initial velocity of 80 km/h. Five volunteers were exposed to approximately 1 g manual emergency braking (MEB), and the muscle responses at the front passenger seat with backrest angles of 25°, 45°, and 65° were recorded. The electromyography obtained from 14 muscles of the neck, torso, and lower extremity were normalized using maximum voluntary contractions (MVCs). In the quiet sitting phase, the activity levels were low (< 5% MVC) in all muscles for the three sitting positions. During emergency braking, the muscles are activated to restrict the body motion. There were differences in muscle amplitude and onset time in different backrest angles, with higher muscle activity levels in most muscles in a reclined sitting position. In particular, the sternocleidomastoid, rectus abdominis, and vastus medialis showed different patterns in the peak and steady-state phases. We found that the tibialis anterior was consistently activated at a lower level in all sitting postures (< 8% MVC), which indicates limited support of the shank for the body. The data provided in the paper are presented in corridors and intended for use in the development and validation of HBMs with active muscle models to simulate evasive maneuvers that potentially occur before a crash in the reclined sitting position.

Volatile organic chloramines formation during ClO2 treatment.

Volatile organic chloramines are reported as the disinfection byproducts during chlorination or chloramination. However, ClO2, as an important alternative disinfectant for chlorine, was not considered to produce halogenated amines. In the present work, volatile organic chloramines including (CH3)2NCl and CH3NCl2 were found to be generated during the reaction of ClO2 and the dye pollutants. (CH3)2NCl was the dominant volatile DBP to result from ClO2 treated all four dye pollutants including Methyl Orange, Methyl Red, Methylene Blue and Malachite Green, with molar yields ranging from 2.6% to 38.5% at a ClO2 to precursor (ClO2/P) molar ratio of 10. HOCl was identified and proved to be the reactive species for the formation of (CH3)2NCl, which implied (CH3)2NCl was transformed by a combined oxidation of ClO2 and hypochlorous acid. (CH3)2NCl concentrations in the ppb range were observed when real water samples were treated by ClO2 in the presence of the dye pollutants. The results suggest that these azo dyes are one of the significant precursors for the formation of HOCl during ClO2 treatment and that organic chloramines should be considered in ClO2 disinfection chemistry and water treatment.

Influence of Skull Fracture on Traumatic Brain Injury Risk Induced by Blunt Impact.

This study is aimed at investigating the influence of skull fractures on traumatic brain injury induced by blunt impact via numerous studies of head-ground impacts. First, finite element (FE) damage modeling was implemented in the skull of the Total HUman Model for Safety (THUMS), and the skull fracture prediction performance was validated against a head-ground impact experiment. Then, the original head model of the THUMS was assigned as the control model without skull element damage modeling. Eighteen (18) head-ground impact models were established using these two FE head models, with three head impact locations (frontal, parietal, and occipital regions) and three impact velocities (25, 35, and 45 km/h). The predicted maximum principal strain and cumulative strain damage measure of the brain tissue were employed to evaluate the effect of skull fracture on the cerebral contusion and diffuse brain injury risks, respectively. Simulation results showed that the skull fracture could reduce the risk of diffuse brain injury risk under medium and high velocities significantly, while it could increase the risk of brain contusion under high-impact velocity.

[Determination of a visco-hyperelastic material law based on dynamic tension test data].

The objective of this study was to determine the visco-hyperelastic constitutive law of brain tissue under dynamic impacts. A method combined by finite element simulations and optimization algorithm was employed for the determination of material variables. Firstly, finite element simulations of brain tissue dynamic uniaxial tension, with a maximum stretch rate of 1.3 and strain rates of 30 s -1 and 90 s -1, were developed referring to experimental data. Then, fitting errors between the engineering stress-strain curves predicted by simulations and experimental average curves were assigned as objective functions, and the multi-objective genetic algorithm was employed for the optimation solution. The results demonstrate that the brain tissue finite element models assigned with the novel obtained visco-hyperelastic material law could predict the brain tissue's dynamic mechanical characteristic well at different loading rates. Meanwhile, the novel material law could also be applied in the human head finite element models for the improvement of the biofidelity under dynamic impact loadings.