106 research outputs found
DiffGAN-F2S: Symmetric and Efficient Denoising Diffusion GANs for Structural Connectivity Prediction from Brain fMRI
Mapping from functional connectivity (FC) to structural connectivity (SC) can
facilitate multimodal brain network fusion and discover potential biomarkers
for clinical implications. However, it is challenging to directly bridge the
reliable non-linear mapping relations between SC and functional magnetic
resonance imaging (fMRI). In this paper, a novel diffusision generative
adversarial network-based fMRI-to-SC (DiffGAN-F2S) model is proposed to predict
SC from brain fMRI in an end-to-end manner. To be specific, the proposed
DiffGAN-F2S leverages denoising diffusion probabilistic models (DDPMs) and
adversarial learning to efficiently generate high-fidelity SC through a few
steps from fMRI. By designing the dual-channel multi-head spatial attention
(DMSA) and graph convolutional modules, the symmetric graph generator first
captures global relations among direct and indirect connected brain regions,
then models the local brain region interactions. It can uncover the complex
mapping relations between fMRI and structural connectivity. Furthermore, the
spatially connected consistency loss is devised to constrain the generator to
preserve global-local topological information for accurate intrinsic SC
prediction. Testing on the public Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
(ADNI) dataset, the proposed model can effectively generate empirical
SC-preserved connectivity from four-dimensional imaging data and shows superior
performance in SC prediction compared with other related models. Furthermore,
the proposed model can identify the vast majority of important brain regions
and connections derived from the empirical method, providing an alternative way
to fuse multimodal brain networks and analyze clinical disease.Comment: 12 page
Spatial relevancy of digital finance in the urban agglomeration of Pearl River Delta and the influence factors
At present, the rapid development of digital finance is closely related to the economic development of urban agglomerations. An urban agglomeration provides conditions for digital finance to form a spatial relevancy network. Exploring the development of digital finance in the urban agglomeration of the Pearl River Delta (PRD), which is the bellwether of China's economy, can provide important practical experience for the economic construction of coastal areas and even the whole country. In this study, using the urban digital finance index issued by the Guangzhou Institute of International Finance, we measured the intensity and direction of the spatial relevancy of digital finance in the PRD urban agglomeration by applying the gravity model, modified in the calculation of distance between cities. Then, we examined the influencing factors of the spatial network of digital finance through the quadratic assignment procedure (QAP) approach. The achieved results are as follows. First, although the overall density is low, the network is tightly connected and stable. Second, in terms of individual characteristics of the network, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan still play the leading roles in the spatial network of digital finance. Third, the digital finance network does not have bidirectional spillover block. The links between segments are relatively loose. Fourth, economic level, degree of opening up, Internet level and geographical location are important factors in driving the formation of spatial relevancy of digital finance in the PRD urban agglomeration
Serum Nâglycans outperform CA19â9 in diagnosis of extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma
Extensive efforts have been devoted to improve the diagnosis of extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ECCA) due to its silent clinical character and lack of effective diagnostic biomarkers. Specific alterations in Nâglycosylation of glycoproteins are considered a key component in cancer progression, which can serve as a distinct molecular signature for cancer detection. This study aims to find potential serum Nâglycan markers for ECCA. In total, 255 serum samples from patients with ECCA (n = 106), benign bile tract disease (BBD, n = 60) and healthy controls (HC, n = 89) were recruited. Only 2 ΟL of serum from individual patients was used in this assay where the Nâglycome of serum glycoproteins was profiled by DNA sequencerâassisted fluorophoreâassisted capillary electrophoresis (DSAâFACE) technology. Multiâparameter models were constructed by combining the Nâglycans and carbohydrate antigen 19â9 (CA19â9) which is currently used clinically. Quantitative analyses showed that among 13 Nâglycan structures, the bifucosylated triantennary Nâglycan (peak10, NA3F2) presented the best diagnostic performance for distinguishing ECCA from BBD and HC. Two diagnostic models (Glycotest1 and Glycotest2) performed better than single Nâglycan or CA19â9. Additionally, two Nâglycan structures (peak9, NA3Fb; peak12, NA4Fb) were tightly related to lymph node metastasis in ECCA patients. In conclusion, sera of ECCA showed relatively specific Nâglycome profiling patterns. Serum Nâglycan markers and models are novel, valuable and noninvasive alternatives in ECCA diagnosis and progression monitoring.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/139072/1/elps6272.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/139072/2/elps6272_am.pd
A Novel CRYGD Mutation (p.Trp43Arg) Causing Autosomal Dominant Congenital Cataract in a Chinese Family
To identify the genetic defect associated with autosomal dominant congenital nuclear cataract in a Chinese family, molecular genetic investigation via haplotype analysis and direct sequencing were performed Sequencing of the CRYGD gene revealed a c.127T>C transition, which resulted in a substitution of a highly conserved tryptophan with arginine at codon 43 (p.Trp43Arg). This mutation co-segregated with all affected individuals and was not observed in either unaffected family members or in 200 normal unrelated individuals. Biophysical studies indicated that the p.Trp43Arg mutation resulted in significant tertiary structural changes. The mutant protein was much less stable than the wild-type protein, and was more prone to aggregate when subjected to environmental stresses such as heat and UV irradiation. Š 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc
Opioid-free anesthesia reduces the severity of acute postoperative motion-induced pain and patient-controlled epidural analgesia-related adverse events in lung surgery: randomized clinical trial
BackgroundOpioids have been used as pain relievers for thousands of years. However, they may also cause undesirable side effects. We therefore performed this study to compare the effect of opioid-free anesthesia (OFA) versus opioid-sparing anesthesia (OSA) on postoperative pain and patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA)-related events.MethodsThis is a single center randomized clinical trial that was recruited patients aged from 18 to 70âyears who received video-assisted lung surgery between October 2021 and February 2022. Participants were 1:1 randomly assigned to OFA or OSA. Patients in the OFA group received propofol, rocuronium, esmolol, lidocaine, and magnesium sulfate intravenously with epidural ropivacaine. Patients in the OSA group received propofol, rocuronium, remifentanil, and sufentanil intravenously with epidural hydromorphone and ropivacaine.ResultsA total number of 124 patients were randomly allocated to the OFA or OSA group. In the OFA group, the severity of pain during coughs on the first postoperative days (PODs; VAS score 1.88âÂąâ0.88 vs. 2.16âÂąâ1.1, pâ=â0.044) was significantly lower than that in the OSA group. The total ratio of PCEA-related adverse events in the OFA group [11 (19.6%) vs. 26 (47.3%), pâ=â0.003] was significantly lower than in the OSA group.ConclusionOFA in patients who received video-assisted lung surgery led to lower severity of acute postoperative motion-induced pain and fewer PCEA-related adverse events on the first POD than in the patients in the OSA group.Clinical trial registrationclinicaltrials.gov, identifier (NCT05063396)
Prevalence and risk factors of hepatitis C among former blood donors in rural China
SummaryBackgroundIllegal commercial plasma and blood donation activities in the late 1980s and early 1990s caused a large number of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in rural areas of China.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was carried out in 2008, in which all residents in a former blood donation village in rural Hebei Province were invited for a questionnaire interview and testing for HCV antibodies. Questionnaires were administered to collect information about their personal status and commercial blood donation history, and HCV antibodies were tested by enzyme immunoassay.ResultsOf 520 villagers who participated in the interviews, 236 (45.4%) reported a history of selling whole blood or plasma. HCV seropositivity was confirmed in 148/520 (28.5%) interviewees and 101/236 (42.8%) former commercial plasma and blood donors. Selling plasma was the strongest independent predictor of HCV seropositivity (p=0.0037). Past history of an operation was also independently associated with HCV infection (p=0.0270).ConclusionsUnsafe practices during illegal plasma donation led to a high risk of HCV seropositivity for donors during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Many infected people suffered chronic hepatitis from that time onwards and urgently needed treatment and care
De Novo Formation of Insulin-Producing âNeo-β Cell Isletsâ from Intestinal Crypts
SUMMARY The ability to interconvert terminally differentiated cells could serve as a powerful tool for cell-based treatment of degenerative diseases, including diabetes mellitus. To determine which, if any, adult tissues are competent to activate an islet β cell program, we performed an in vivo screen by expressing three β cell âreprogramming factorsâ in a wide spectrum of tissues. We report that transient intestinal expression of these factorsâPdx1, MafA, and Ngn3 (PMN)âpromotes rapid conversion of intestinal crypt cells into endocrine cells, which coalesce into âneoisletsâ below the crypt base. Neoislet cells express insulin and show ultrastructural features of β cells. Importantly, intestinal neoislets are glucose-responsive and able to ameliorate hyperglycemia in diabetic mice. Moreover, PMN expression in human intestinal âorganoidsâ stimulates the conversion of intestinal epithelial cells into β-like cells. Our results thus demonstrate that the intestine is an accessible and abundant source of functional insulin-producing cells
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