Deep learning algorithms for melanoma detection using dermoscopic images: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Melanoma is a serious risk to human health and early identification is vital for treatment success. Deep learning (DL) has the potential to detect cancer using imaging technologies and many studies provide evidence that DL algorithms can achieve high accuracy in melanoma diagnostics. OBJECTIVES: To critically assess different DL performances in diagnosing melanoma using dermatoscopic images and discuss the relationship between dermatologists and DL. METHODS: Ovid-Medline, Embase, IEEE Xplore, and the Cochrane Library were systematically searched from inception until 7th December 2021. Studies that reported diagnostic DL model performances in detecting melanoma using dermatoscopic images were included if they had specific outcomes and histopathologic confirmation. Binary diagnostic accuracy data and contingency tables were extracted to analyze outcomes of interest, which included sensitivity (SEN), specificity (SPE), and area under the curve (AUC). Subgroup analyses were performed according to human-machine comparison and cooperation. The study was registered in PROSPERO, CRD42022367824. RESULTS: 2309 records were initially retrieved, of which 37 studies met our inclusion criteria, and 27 provided sufficient data for meta-analytical synthesis. The pooled SEN was 82 % (range 77-86), SPE was 87 % (range 84-90), with an AUC of 0.92 (range 0.89-0.94). Human-machine comparison had pooled AUCs of 0.87 (0.84-0.90) and 0.83 (0.79-0.86) for DL and dermatologists, respectively. Pooled AUCs were 0.90 (0.87-0.93), 0.80 (0.76-0.83), and 0.88 (0.85-0.91) for DL, and junior and senior dermatologists, respectively. Analyses of human-machine cooperation were 0.88 (0.85-0.91) for DL, 0.76 (0.72-0.79) for unassisted, and 0.87 (0.84-0.90) for DL-assisted dermatologists. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence suggests that DL algorithms are as accurate as senior dermatologists in melanoma diagnostics. Therefore, DL could be used to support dermatologists in diagnostic decision-making. Although, further high-quality, large-scale multicenter studies are required to address the specific challenges associated with medical AI-based diagnostics.

Empirically testing a relationship between cooperation and the prime numbers.

Theoretical models suggest a relationship between cooperation and the prime numbers. In environments where agents play multiple one-shot prisoner's dilemma games per generation, cooperators evolve to fixation more frequently when cooperating on a cyclical schedule with a prime-number period length. This finding parrots classic predator-prey models showing selection for prime-number prey life cycles. Here, I report an empirical test of the former models using previously published data concerning humans playing one-shot public goods games across multiple time points-i.e. an analogue to multiple one-shot prisoner's dilemma games. I find very modest evidence of cyclicality at prime-numbered time intervals, though results indicate rough agreement between theoretical predictions and observed rates of full cooperation across time points. Analyses of individual decisions find increased contributions to the public good at prime-number time points and separate placebo tests indicate a 4-in-1000 chance of spuriously estimating this effect. However, when exploratory analyses exclude low-value prime-numbered time points, the magnitude of the estimated effect decreases and the hypothesis of no effect cannot be rejected, implying that low-value, prime-number time points drive estimates, contrary to theoretical model predictions. These findings cast doubt on the hypothesis of increased cooperation at prime-number time points-at least among humans playing public goods games.

Social identification and paranoia.

Paranoia is associated with variation in social behaviour, such as lower inclination to trust others or to behave generously in economic game settings. Such variation may stem, in part, from a reduced tendency to socially identify with others, although previous studies have reported mixed results. We tested whether paranoia involves altered social identification in a pre-registered online study investigating the relationship between a measure of social identification, paranoia, and social behaviours in economic games. We successfully manipulated social identification, but paranoia was associated with slightly increased social identification overall. Neither paranoia nor social identification predicted behaviour in the economic games, and there was no interaction between paranoia and social identification regarding trusting and cooperative behaviours. Our results converge with recent work suggesting that more paranoid individuals may harbour a higher tendency to perceive themselves as having similar beliefs to others. We discuss some key areas for future research to progress understanding in this area.

When does antimicrobial resistance increase bacterial fitness? Effects of dosing, social interactions, and frequency dependence on the benefits of AmpC ß-lactamases in broth, biofilms, and a gut infection model.

One of the longstanding puzzles of antimicrobial resistance is why the frequency of resistance persists at intermediate levels. Theoretical explanations for the lack of fixation of resistance include cryptic costs of resistance or negative frequency-dependence but are seldom explored experimentally. ß-lactamases, which detoxify penicillin-related antibiotics, have well-characterized frequency-dependent dynamics driven by cheating and cooperation. However, bacterial physiology determines whether ß-lactamases are cooperative, and we know little about the sociality or fitness of ß-lactamase producers in infections. Moreover, media-based experiments constrain how we measure fitness and ignore important parameters such as infectivity and transmission among hosts. Here, we investigated the fitness effects of broad-spectrum AmpC ß-lactamases in Enterobacter cloacae in broth, biofilms, and gut infections in a model insect. We quantified frequency- and dose-dependent fitness using cefotaxime, a third-generation cephalosporin. We predicted that infection dynamics would be similar to those observed in biofilms, with social protection extending over a wide dose range. We found evidence for the sociality of ß-lactamases in all contexts with negative frequency-dependent selection, ensuring the persistence of wild-type bacteria, although cooperation was less prevalent in biofilms, contrary to predictions. While competitive fitness in gut infections and broth had similar dynamics, incorporating infectivity into measurements of fitness in infections significantly affected conclusions. Resistant bacteria had reduced infectivity, which limited the fitness benefits of resistance to infections challenged with low antibiotic doses and low initial frequencies of resistance. The fitness of resistant bacteria in more physiologically tolerant states (in biofilms, in infections) could be constrained by the presence of wild-type bacteria, high antibiotic doses, and limited availability of ß-lactamases. One conclusion is that increased tolerance of ß-lactams does not necessarily increase selection pressure for resistance. Overall, both cryptic fitness costs and frequency dependence curtailed the fitness benefits of resistance in this study.

Design and management considerations for the Kenya-Tanzania marine transboundary conservation area.

Although transboundary conservation areas (TCAs) are critical tools for protecting ecosystems and ecological processes that transcend national jurisdictions, they are challenging to create due to the differences in governance contexts and capacity and power dynamics among countries. Marine TCAs are also more difficult to enforce relative to terrestrial TCAs because most nations still treat oceans as open access. Current guidelines for TCA development and implementation also focus mostly on terrestrial TCAs, which are not practical for marine TCAs. Hence, we reviewed the challenges associated with the design and management of marine TCAs and devised analytical and practical approaches to support the application of spatial planning frameworks and adaptive governance mechanisms. We used the lessons from the review to examine the decisions made for the proposed marine TCA in the Kenya-Tanzania border region and created options and considerations to promote effective design and management processes. We found the obstacles to marine TCAs in general are related to issues of fit, particularly differences in environmental research capacity, socioeconomic contexts, and internal institutional arrangements. These included differences in knowledge and capacity for marine ecological research and conservation; ability to adjust and update data; differences in values, interests, and resource uses; conservation costs; jurisdictional differences; engagement of multiple levels of organization; and differences in legal bases and policy development processes. Understanding and reconciling these challenges during the TCA development process can help enhance meaningful discussions in the design of the TCA and cultivate the enabling conditions for collaborative governance across countries and within different levels of organization from national to local actors.

Consideraciones en el diseño y gestión del área marina de conservación transfronteriza en Kenia y Tanzania Resumen Aunque las áreas de conservación transfronterizas (ACT) son herramientas importantes para proteger los ecosistemas y los procesos ecológicos que trascienden la jurisdicción nacional, crearlas es un reto debido a la diferencia en los contextos de gobierno y la capacidad y las dinámicas de poder entre los países. Las ACT marinas también son más difíciles de ejecutar en relación a las terrestres porque la mayoría de los países todavía tratan al océano como de libre acceso. Los lineamientos actuales para el desarrollo e implementación de las ACT también se enfocan principalmente en las ACT terrestres, lo cual no es práctico para las ACT marinas. Por lo tanto, revisamos los retos asociados con el diseño y gestión de las ACT marinas y concebimos estrategias analíticas y prácticas para apoyar con la aplicación de los marcos de planeación espacial y los mecanismos de gobierno adaptativo. Usamos lo aprendido con la revisión para analizar las decisiones tomadas para la ACT marina propuesta en la región fronteriza de Kenia y Tanzania y creamos opciones y consideraciones para promover el diseño y procesos de manejo efectivos. Encontramos que los obstáculos para las ACT marinas en general se relacionan con temas de ajuste, en particular las diferencias en la capacidad de investigación ambiental, los contextos socioeconómicos y los acuerdos institucionales internos. Estos obstáculos incluyeron diferencias en el conocimiento y capacidad para la investigación ecológica marina; la habilidad para ajustar y actualizar datos; las diferencias en los valores, intereses y usos de los recursos; los costos de conservación; las diferencias jurídicas; la participación de varios niveles de organización; y las diferencias en las bases legales y los procesos de desarrollo de políticas. El entendimiento y reconciliación de estos retos durante el proceso de desarrollo de una ACT puede ayudar a mejorar las discusiones significativas en el diseño de la ACT y a cultivar las condiciones que permitan la gestión colaborativa entre los países y entre los diferentes niveles de organización, desde el nacional hasta los actores locales.

An academic cooperation between the Japan Sports Nutrition Association (JSNA) and the Korean Society for Exercise Nutrition (KSEN).

PURPOSE: The Japan Sports Nutrition Association (JSNA) is an academic society that aims to contribute to people's health and the development of sports in Japan. METHODS: After numerous communication and academic events, the JSNA and the Korean Society for Exercise Nutrition (KSEN) exchanged a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in 2018. RESULTS: Based on the MoU, the JSNA and KSEN organized academic exchange events until the Coronavirus Disease 2019 pandemic and subsequent travel restrictions and lockdowns. CONCLUSION: After four years of the pandemic and the downgrading of Coronavirus Disease 2019 infection risk, it is hoped that academic exchanges between the societies will resume gradually and enhance members' recognition of the cooperation between the JSNA and KSEN for active collaborations in the future.

Half a century of Japanese research on two Neglected Tropical Diseases (trypanosomiasis and leishmaniasis): Overseas scientific cooperation.

Trypanosoma and Leishmania species are responsible of a range of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) from disfiguring conditions to fatal processes in humans. Both genera also affect wild and domestic animals causing diseases of public health significance and high economic impact on farm economy of developing areas. Japan has been actively involved in overseas cooperation and the country has a large scientific community. However, there is no information on the scientific output of Japanese scientists and institutions on these two NTDs. To explore the Japanese contribution and its profile, we have mined Web of Science database from 1971 to 2022 the articles by Japanese scientists, scientific areas and institutions, time-related variations of these parameters, and involvement in cooperation activities with foreign scientists. Research on Trypanosoma has been present in all the studied period, with higher production, whereas Leishmania-related activities showed a delay. A steady increased of Japanese scientific output was found up to the beginning of 2000s, whereas a certain stagnation was found in the present century. Low growth rate of research output on these two NTDs by Japanese authors in the 21st century is not correlated neither to the pattern found globally nor the situation in other parasitic infections. Thus, other elements should be considered in future analysis including the actual number of scientists involved and the available funding. Reinforcement of research groups from Japanese institutions and widening the scope of collaborations, particularly with health and academic centers from endemic regions, could trigger the Japanese productivity in the research area.

The place of health in the EU-CELAC interregional cooperation from 2005 to 2023: a historical, empirical and prospective analysis.

BACKGROUND: Much has been said by actors from different fields and perspectives about the manifold changes in world affairs triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this context, it is to be expected that there will be impacts on long-standing partnerships such as the one between the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean Countries. However, few studies have demonstrated these impacts, either empirically, by uncovering their specificities or from a historical perspective, to allow for a reasonable methodological comparison of the patterns used to define the partnership and that have changed or have been affected in some way by the pandemic. RESULTS: Through an in-depth qualitative assessment of primary and secondary sources, this article contributes to this research gap. It analyzes the patterns and changes or impacts in light of two strands of behavior that can make sense of EU-CELAC health cooperation-revisionist or reformist. The findings show an economy-driven health agenda as a new pattern of cooperation, which derives from EU reformist behavior after the pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: The EU power to enforce its priorities in the context of health cooperation with CELAC is the main factor that will define how (and not just which) competing interests and capacities will be accommodated. The relevance of the study to the fields of global governance for health, interregional health cooperation and EU foreign policy is threefold. It shows us i.how two more international regimes are easily intertwined with health-trade and intellectual property-with the potential to deepen asymmetries and divergences even between long-standing strategic partners; ii.contrary to the idea that reformist behaviors are only adopted by actors who are dissatisfied with the status quo, the study shows us that the reformist actor can also be the one who has more material power and influence and who nevertheless challenges the success of cooperation in the name of new priorities and the means to achieve them; and iii.how the EU will find it difficult to operationalize its new priorities internally, among states and private actors, and with those of CELAC, given the history of intense disputes over health-related economic aspects.

Computational evolution of social norms in well-mixed and group-structured populations.

Models of indirect reciprocity study how social norms promote cooperation. In these models, cooperative individuals build up a positive reputation, which in turn helps them in their future interactions. The exact reputational benefits of cooperation depend on the norm in place, which may change over time. Previous research focused on the stability of social norms. Much less is known about how social norms initially evolve when competing with many others. A comprehensive evolutionary analysis, however, has been difficult. Even among the comparably simple space of so-called third-order norms, there are thousands of possibilities, each one inducing its own reputation dynamics. To address this challenge, we use large-scale computer simulations. We study the reputation dynamics of each third-order norm and all evolutionary transitions between them. In contrast to established work with only a handful of norms, we find that cooperation is hard to maintain in well-mixed populations. However, within group-structured populations, cooperation can emerge. The most successful norm in our simulations is particularly simple. It regards cooperation as universally positive, and defection as usually negative-unless defection takes the form of justified punishment. This research sheds light on the complex interplay of social norms, their induced reputation dynamics, and population structure.

Double-edged sword effects of sulfate reduction process in sulfur autotrophic denitrification system: Accelerating nitrogen removal and promoting antibiotic resistance genes spread.

This study proposed the double-edged sword effects of sulfate reduction process on nitrogen removal and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) transmission in sulfur autotrophic denitrification system. Excitation-emission matrix-parallel factor analysis identified the protein-like fraction in soluble microbial products as main endogenous organic matter driving the sulfate reduction process. The resultant sulfide tended to serve as bacterial modulators, augmenting electron transfer processes and mitigating oxidative stress, thereby enhancing sulfur oxidizing bacteria (SOB) activity, rather than extra electron donors. The cooperation between SOB and heterotroph (sulfate reducing bacteria (SRB) and heterotrophic denitrification bacteria (HDB)) were responsible for advanced nitrogen removal, facilitated by multiple metabolic pathways including denitrification, sulfur oxidation, and sulfate reduction. However, SRB and HDB were potential ARGs hosts and assimilatory sulfate reduction pathway positively contributed to ARGs spread. Overall, the sulfate reduction process in sulfur autotrophic denitrification system boosted nitrogen removal process, but also increased the risk of ARGs transmission.

Reimagining the role of community health workers in SAARC countries.

Following the Alma Ata declaration, SAARC countries have established their workforce of community health workers (CHWs) to address primary healthcare needs. Initially focused on maternal and child health, the countries now confront a changing healthcare landscape characterized by noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), mental health issues, and surgical conditions. These developments have led to the emergence of specialized CHWs tasked with managing NCDs and mental health concerns, prompting a reevaluation of the balance between specialization and maintaining a generalist approach. The effectiveness of CHWs during crises hinges on critical factors such as standardized training, opportunities for career advancement, and equitable compensation. This viewpoint makes a call to introduce a specialist category of CHW to align with evolving healthcare requirements in SAARC countries.

Do pet dogs reciprocate the receipt of food from familiar and unfamiliar conspecifics?

Reciprocity is one of the most prominent explanations for the evolution of stable cooperation. Although reciprocity has been studied for decades in numerous animal species and behavioural contexts, its underlying proximate mechanisms remain unclear. Domestic dogs provide a useful model species for the study of proximate mechanisms, though there are currently inconsistent findings regarding dogs' propensity to reciprocate. Here, we investigated whether, after minimal training, pet dogs would press a button, which remotely controlled a food dispenser, to deliver food to an enclosure occupied by a helpful conspecific that had provided them with food or an unhelpful conspecific that had not provided them with food. We included an asocial control condition in which the enclosure was unoccupied and a social facilitation control in which the food delivery mechanism was non-functional. Whether subjects were familiar with the helpful and unhelpful conspecifics was also varied. In addition, to investigate potential mechanisms underlying reciprocity, we measured subjects salivary oxytocin concentration before and after they experienced the helpful and unhelpful acts. There was no effect of the previous helpfulness or the familiarity of the partner on the number of times subjects pressed the button. However, there was also no effect of the presence of a partner or the operationality of the food delivery mechanism on the number of button presses, indicating that subjects were not pressing the button to provision the partner. Moreover, the experience of the helpful or unhelpful act did not influence subjects' salivary oxytocin concentration. Variation in findings of reciprocity across studies appears to correspond with differing training protocols. Subjects' understanding of the task in the current study may have been constrained by the limited training received. Additional tests to verify subjects' understanding of such tasks are warranted in future studies.

Evolutionary dynamics of cooperation coupled with ecological feedback compensation.

A simple theoretical model (or a demonstrative example) was developed to illustrate how the evolution of cooperation can be affected by the density-dependent survival competition, in which we assume that the fertility of an individual depends only on the pairwise interaction between him and other individuals based on Prisoner's Dilemma game, while its viability is only related to the density-dependent survival competitiveness. Our results show that not only cooperation could be evolutionarily stable if the advantage of cooperators in viability can compensate for the cost they pay for their fertility, but also the long-term stable coexistence of cooperation and defection is possible if none of cooperation and defection is evolutionarily stable. Moreover, for the stochastic evolutionary dynamics in a finite population, our analysis shows that the increase (or decrease) of the survival competitiveness of cooperators (or defectors) should be conductive to the evolutionary emergence of cooperation.

Moderate cardiac vagal tone predicts more cooperation in highly sensitive individuals.

Cooperation, as a mutual collaboration, is a defining feature of human social life. Individual characteristics can influence cooperation. Recent studies have shown a quadratic relationship between cardiac vagal tone (CVT), an index of self-regulation, and prosocial behaviors. Individual differences in cooperation might also vary as a function of people's environmental sensitivity (ES), i.e., may be influenced by individual differences in the perception and processing of inner and external stimuli. We tested the direct and interactive effect of CVT and ES on cooperative behaviors in two independent samples. We measured heart rate and engagement in cooperative acts in 80 young adults (M = 23.61; SD = 1.60) who were also asked to self-report on ES. We found an inverted-U relationship between CVT and cooperative behaviors. ES, on the other hand, did not predict differences in cooperative behaviors but moderated the relationships between CVT and cooperation, although the magnitude of this result was small. Specifically, only among individuals with higher ES cooperative behaviors change as a function of CVT. Highly sensitive individuals with lower or higher CVT, were less cooperative than low sensitive ones. Subsequently, we replicated the same study design in a second sample of 88 undergraduate students (M = 23.69; SD = 4.91). Once again, we found evidence supporting the presence of an inverted-U relationship between CVT and cooperative behaviors, and we also found that ES moderated the relationships between the quadratic CVT term and cooperation.

Work ability meetings - Challenges and Resolutions, a survey to Finnish occupational physicians.

BACKGROUND: Work ability meetings (WAM) are an essential and common tool of disability management in occupational health services in Finland. Meetings are held between an employee, a supervisor, and an occupational physician (OP). The aim is mainly to support work ability. OBJECTIVES: To describe challenges and resolutions in the meetings as described by OPs. METHODS: An internet survey was emailed to the members (n = 1304) of the Finnish Society of Occupational Health Physicians in August 2014. We asked physicians to describe those WAMs they had attended, especially challenges and resolutions concerning WAM. RESULTS: A total of 302 (23%) OPs responded to the survey. Most severe of the challenges were personal conflicts and a lack of confidence between the parties at the workplace. Also, the participants' views may differ about the purpose and goal of the meeting. The respondents noted that the employer might be unable to organize modified work for disabled employees. As a resolution, OPs need to prepare well and maintain their professional and neutral role in WAMs in all cases. OPs also mentioned the need for training in insurance medicine and rehabilitation as well as skills as a mediator. CONCLUSIONS: WAM is a potential tool for return to work and disability management in collaboration between employees, employers, and occupational health when all the participants reach a common goal and become aware of their role in the process. OPs need to recognize possible conflicting interests and contact each party before WAM. Keeping confidentiality in WAMs is a crucial matter.

Multivariate pattern analysis of cooperation and competition in constructive action.

The neural underpinning of cooperative and competitive constructive activity has been investigated using mass-univariate approaches. In this study, we sought to compare the results of these approaches with the results of multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA). In particular, we wanted to test whether MVPA supports the claim made in previous studies that cooperation is associated with the activity of reward-related brain circuits. Participants were required to construct a pattern on the screen either individually or in cooperation or competition with another person during an fMRI scan. Both the MVPA classification methods and the representational similarity analysis indicated the involvement of orbitofrontal and ventromedial prefrontal areas in processes that distinguish between cooperation and competition, and activation analysis showed that these areas are more active during cooperation than during competition. However, a single trial analysis showed that the effect was reversed when only winning trials were considered. In these trials, activation of reward-related areas was higher during competition than during cooperation. Moreover, the contrast between won and lost trials in terms of reward circuits involvement was sharper under competition than under cooperation. Thus, although cooperation can be generally more rewarding than competition, it is associated with smaller difference between trials lost and trials won in terms of reward circuits activation. One may speculate that in cooperation, victory and defeat are shared with the partner and, contrary to competition, are not experienced as personal achievement or failure.

Competitive (but not cooperative) body odors bias the discrimination of action intentions towards cooperation.

Odors help us to interpret the environment, including the nature of social interactions. But, whether and how they influence the ability to discriminate the intentional states embedded in actions is unclear. In two experiments, we asked two independent groups of participants to discriminate motor intentions from videos showing one agent performing a reach-to-grasp movement with another agent with a cooperative or a competitive intent, and the same movement performed alone at either natural- or fast-speed, as controls. Task-irrelevant odor primes preceded each video presentation. Experiment 1 (N = 19) included masked cooperative and competitive body odors (human sweat collected while the donors were engaged in cooperative and competitive activities), whereas Experiment 2 (N = 20) included a common odor (cedarwood oil) and no odor (clean air) as primes. In an odor-primed, two-alternative forced choice task, participants discriminated the intention underlying the observed action. The results indicated that the odor exposure modulated the discrimination speed across different intentions, but only when the action intentions were hard to discriminate (cooperative vs. individual natural-speed, and competitive vs. individual fast-speed). Contrary to our hypothesis, a direct odor-action intention compatibility effect was not found. Instead, we propose a negative arousal compatibility-like effect to explain our results. Discrimination of high arousing action intentions (i.e., competitive) took longer when primed by high arousing odors (common odor and competitive body odor) than by low arousing odors (cooperative body odor and no odor). Discrimination of low arousing action intentions (i.e., cooperative) took longer when primed by low arousing odors than by high arousing odors. All in all, competitive (but not cooperative) body odors bias the discrimination of action intentions towards cooperation.

Competitive inhibition and mutualistic growth in co-infections: deciphering Staphylococcus aureus-Acinetobacter baumannii interaction dynamics.

Staphylococcus aureus (Sa) and Acinetobacter baumannii (Ab) are frequently co-isolated from polymicrobial infections that are severe and refractory to therapy. Here, we apply a combination of wet-lab experiments and in silico modeling to unveil the intricate nature of the Ab/Sa interaction using both, representative laboratory strains and strains co-isolated from clinical samples. This comprehensive methodology allowed uncovering Sa's capability to exert a partial interference on Ab by the expression of phenol-soluble modulins. In addition, we observed a cross-feeding mechanism by which Sa supports the growth of Ab by providing acetoin as an alternative carbon source. This study is the first to dissect the Ab/Sa interaction dynamics wherein competitive and cooperative strategies can intertwine. Through our findings, we illuminate the ecological mechanisms supporting their coexistence in the context of polymicrobial infections. Our research not only enriches our understanding but also opens doors to potential therapeutic avenues in managing these challenging infections.

Coordination, cooperation, competition, crowding and congestion of molecular motors: Theoretical models and computer simulations.

Cytoskeletal motor proteins are biological nanomachines that convert chemical energy into mechanical work to carry out various functions such as cell division, cell motility, cargo transport, muscle contraction, beating of cilia and flagella, and ciliogenesis. Most of these processes are driven by the collective operation of several motors in the crowded viscous intracellular environment. Imaging and manipulation of the motors with powerful experimental probes have been complemented by mathematical analysis and computer simulations of the corresponding theoretical models. In this article, we illustrate some of the key theoretical approaches used to understand how coordination, cooperation and competition of multiple motors in the crowded intra-cellular environment drive the processes that are essential for biological function of a cell. In spite of the focus on theory, experimentalists will also find this article as an useful summary of the progress made so far in understanding multiple motor systems.

Promoting the development of ethnic medicine in China: policy evaluation and optimization countermeasures.

Background: The coordinated development of ethnic medicine is a basic necessity for steady construction of a healthy China. This process includes closely following domestic and foreign policies, including changes, through the optimization of policies; shaping the new direction of the development of national medicine; and achieving comprehensive technological and industrial upgrades. As such, ensuring the all-round development of national medicine in China remains a great challenge. Methods: This paper takes the relevant policies of national and local ethnic medicine issued by the government as the research object, and, through the full interpretation of the policy-issuing body, policy content, and policy effectiveness, deeply analyzes the current situation of the policy's role in ethnic medicine and explores the distribution of policy types, subject-cooperation modes, and scoring levels in various dimensions. Results: This study found that, in the new era of pharmaceutical reform, the State lacks a variety of special policies on ethnomedicine, and there is also an imbalance in the use of policy tools at both the central and local levels as well as synergies in the implementation of policies that need to be further strengthened. Discussion: There remains a need to continue to improve the policy-evaluation system, optimize the structure for the use of policy tools, and improve the rates of application and implementation of the national medicine policy by strengthening cross-provincial and multisectoral cooperation to promote the revitalization of the national medicine industry in China.