Perturbed Lipidomic Profiles in Rats With Chronic Cerebral Ischemia Are Regulated by Xiao-Xu-Ming Decoction

Chronic cerebral ischemia (CCI) is a serious human health condition with lacking therapeutic agents. Moreover, its mechanism of action remains elusive, and thus novel treatment options are required. Lipid metabolism disorder are closely related to CCI. In this study, a CCI-rats model was established by the permanent occlusion of rat bilateral common carotid arteries, and then the rats were treated with a Xiao-Xu-Ming decoction (XXMD). Lipidomic profiling was conducted in both plasma and brain o determine the effects of the injury and therapy on lipid metabolism. Sphingolipid (particularly long acyl chain and total ceramides), glyceryl phosphatide, and glyceride profiles significantly changed in the brain after model induction and again after dosing. A total of 35 potential biomarkers were found in the brain and four were found in the plasma, representing both CCI injury and XXMD action. Correlations between endogenous lipids and exogenous XXMD compounds were analyzed using linear regression. Two exogenous compounds (cimifugin and 5-O-methylvisamminol) in the brain and 17 exogenous compounds in the plasma, which may represent the active constituents in XXMD, were significantly associated with lipid metabolism. This study provides a new perspective on the potential mechanism of CCI and its treatment with XXMD, as well as on discovering effective components in traditional Chinese medicines

Prenatal diagnosis and clinical management of cardiac rhabdomyoma: a single-center study

ObjectiveThe study aims to assess the ultrasonic features of fetal cardiac rhabdomyoma (CR), track the perinatal outcome and postnatal disease progression, investigate the clinical utility of ultrasound, MRI and tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) gene analysis in CR evaluation, and offer evidence for determing of fetal CR prognosis.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective analysis of prenatal ultrasound-diagnosed fetal CR cases in our hospital from June 2011 to June 2022, tracked the perinatal outcomes, regularly followed live infants to analyze cardiac lesion changes and disease progression, and compared the sensitivities of ultrasound, MRI and their combination in the detecting of intracranial sclerosing nodules.ResultsOur study included 54 fetuses with CR: 32 pregnancies were terminated, 22 were delivered, 35 were diagnosed with TSC, 13 had simple CR without TSC, and in 6 cases, remained unclear whether TSC accompanied the CR due to insufficient evidence. 45 fetuses (83.3%) had multiple lesions, while 9 fetuses (16.7%) presented with a single lesion. Twelve cases had intracardiac complications, all associated with multiple lesions, and these cases exhibited larger maximum tumor diameters than the non-complicated group. Multiple intracardiac lesions were more prevalent in the TSC group than in the simple CR group. However, there was no significant difference in maximum tumor diameter between the two groups. Among 30 fetuses who underwent fetal brain MRI, 23 were eventually diagnosed with TSC, with 11 fetuses showing intracranial sclerosis nodules by ultrasound and 15 by MRI, and the diagnostic consistency was moderate (k = 0.60). Twenty-two fetuses were born and followed up for 6–36 months. CR lesions diminished or disappeared in 18 infants (81.8%), while they remained unchanged in 4 infants (18.2%). Ten out of 12 (83.3%) surviving children diagnosed with TSC developed epilepsy, and 7 (58.3%) had neurodevelopmental dysfunction.ConclusionsThe majority of CR cases involve multiple lesions, which are a primary risk factor for TSC. Through prenatal ultrasound examination is crucial for assessing fetal CR prognosis. Although ultrasound combined with MRI can detect intracranial sclerosis nodules in TSC fetuses, its sensitivity is limited. TSC gene sequencing is an essential diagnostic method. Simple CR cases without TSC generally have a favorable prognosis

Magnetic PiezoBOTs: a microrobotic approach for targeted amyloid protein dissociation

Piezoelectric nanomaterials have become increasingly popular in the field of biomedical applications due to their high biocompatibility and ultrasound-mediated piezocatalytic properties. In addition, the ability of these nanomaterials to disaggregate amyloid proteins, which are responsible for a range of diseases resulting from the accumulation of these proteins in body tissues and organs, has recently gained considerable attention. However, the use of nanoparticles in biomedicine poses significant challenges, including targeting and uncontrolled aggregation. To address these limitations, our study proposes to load these functional nanomaterials on a multifunctional mobile microrobot This microrobot is designed by coating magnetic and piezoelectric barium titanate nanoparticles on helical biotemplates, allowing for the combination of magnetic navigation and ultrasound-mediated piezoelectric effects to target amyloid disaggregation. Our findings demonstrate that acoustically actuated PiezoBOTs can effectively reduce the size of aggregated amyloid proteins by over 80% in less than 10 minutes by shortening and dissociating constituent amyloid fibrils. Moreover, the PiezoBOTs can be easily magnetically manipulated to actuate the piezocatalytic nanoparticles to specific amyloidosis-affected tissues or organs, minimizing side effects. These biocompatible PiezoBOTs offer a promising non-invasive therapeutic approach for amyloidosis diseases by targeting and breaking down protein aggregates at specific organ or tissue sites

Contemporary survival and anticoagulation of patients with atrial fibrillation: A community based cohort study in China

BackgroundsThe understanding of death in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) in China is limited. This study aimed to assess the contemporary survival of AF patients in China and to explore risk factors for deaths.MethodsThis was a prospective community-based cohort study including 559 AF patients, who were followed-up from July 2015 to December 2020.ResultsDuring 66-month follow-up, there were 200 deaths (56.5% cardiovascular, 40.0% non-cardiovascular, and 3.5% unknown causes) among 559 AF patients with the median age of 76 years. The top three causes of death were heart failure (33.0%), ischemic stroke (17.0%) and cancer (16.5%). Multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated baseline variables positively associated with all-cause death were age (HR: 1.10, 95% CI: 1.08–1.13), AF subtype (HR: 1.37, 95% CI: 1.08–1.73), prior myocardial infarction (HR: 3.40, 95% CI: 1.48–7.78), previous tumor (HR: 2.61, 95% CI: 1.37–4.98), hypoglycemic therapy at baseline (HR: 1.81, 95% CI: 1.13–2.91), but body weight (HR: 0.98, 95% CI: 0.97–1.00) and use of calcium channel blocker (CCB) (HR: 0.62, 95% CI: 0.41–0.95) played a protective role to all-cause death. Of patients who were alive at the end of follow-up, 24.0% were on oral anticoagulants (OAC) alone, 4.5% on dual antithrombotic therapy, 33.1% on antiplatelet agents alone and 38.4% weren't on any antithrombotic medication.ConclusionIschemic stroke still remains one of the leading causes of death and OAC is seriously underused in AF patients in China. Independent risk factors for death are age, AF subtype, previous tumor, prior myocardial infarction, hypoglycemic therapy, low body weight and no CCB use.Clinical Trial Registrationhttp://www.chictr.org.cn/ (ChiCTR-ICR-15007036)

Detection of copy number variations in rice using array-based comparative genomic hybridization

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Copy number variations (CNVs) can create new genes, change gene dosage, reshape gene structures, and modify elements regulating gene expression. As with all types of genetic variation, CNVs may influence phenotypic variation and gene expression. CNVs are thus considered major sources of genetic variation. Little is known, however, about their contribution to genetic variation in rice.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To detect CNVs, we used a set of NimbleGen whole-genome comparative genomic hybridization arrays containing 718,256 oligonucleotide probes with a median probe spacing of 500 bp. We compiled a high-resolution map of CNVs in the rice genome, showing 641 CNVs between the genomes of the rice cultivars 'Nipponbare' (from <it>O. sativa </it>ssp. <it>japonica</it>) and 'Guang-lu-ai 4' (from <it>O. sativa </it>ssp. <it>indica</it>). The CNVs identified vary in size from 1.1 kb to 180.7 kb, and encompass approximately 7.6 Mb of the rice genome. The largest regions showing copy gain and loss are of 37.4 kb on chromosome 4, and 180.7 kb on chromosome 8. In addition, 85 DNA segments were identified, including some genic sequences. Contracted genes greatly outnumbered duplicated ones. Many of the contracted genes corresponded to either the same genes or genes involved in the same biological processes; this was also the case for genes involved in disease and defense.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We detected CNVs in rice by array-based comparative genomic hybridization. These CNVs contain known genes. Further discussion of CNVs is important, as they are linked to variation among rice varieties, and are likely to contribute to subspecific characteristics.</p

Electrical and thermal properties of surface passivated carbon nanotube/polyvinylidene fluoride composites

The composites reported here were prepared through a melt-rolling mixing process, in which surface passivated multi-wall carbon nanotube and poly(vinylidene fluoride) were used as the filler and the matrix, respectively. X-ray diffraction, precision inductance–capacitance–resistance, and laser flash thermal-diffusivity analyses were employed to characterise the structural, electrical and thermal properties. Results indicate that through the surface passivation of carbon nanotubes, the electrical resistivities of the composites were greatly enhanced, while the thermal conductivities do not change significantly. The electrical properties were discussed in comparison with the Maxwell–Wagner polarisation, universal law, and Gerhardt's method

A thermosensitive gel formulation of an empirical traditional Chinese prescription for treating cervical erosion

Cervical erosion, a pathological change associated with chronic cervicitis, is a common condition that is difficult to cure. Many patients particularly those with mild or medium infection and those preparing for pregnancy require a simple but effective medication. In this study, extracts of an empirical herbal prescription composed of six Chinese traditional drugs viz Cortex Phellodendri, Rhizoma Coptidis, Olibanum, Myrrha, borneol and catechu were formulated to facilitate intravaginal administration and improve efficacy. An extract of the first four components was formulated with borneol as a thermosensitive gel (TG) while an extract of catechu used to prepare a regular gel (CG) because of a chemical incompatibility. The optimized TG was prepared using poloxamer 407 and poloxamer 188. The CG was prepared using glycerin, carbopol and triethanolamine. The gels were characterized in vitro in terms of release of berberine (TG) and total catechins (CG) and in vivo in a rat model of cervical erosion. Treatment by once daily application of the TG for 7 days followed by once daily application of the CG for 3 days produced a restoration of normal tissues. Gel formulation of the empirical Chinese traditional remedy appears to provide a promising treatment for cervical erosion