Acupuncture treatment for ischaemic stroke in young adults: protocol for a randomised, sham-controlled clinical trial

INTRODUCTION: Stroke in young adults is not uncommon. Although the overall incidence of stroke has been recently declining, the incidence of stroke in young adults is increasing. Traditional vascular risk factors are the main cause of young ischaemic stroke. Acupuncture has been shown to benefit stroke rehabilitation and ameliorate the risk factors for stroke. The aims of this study were to determine whether acupuncture treatment will be effective in improving the activities of daily living (ADL), motor function and quality of life (QOL) in patients of young ischaemic stroke, and in preventing stroke recurrence by controlling blood pressure, lipids and body weight. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: In this randomised, sham-controlled, participant-blinded and assessor-blinded clinical trial, 120 patients between 18 and 45 years of age with a recent (within 1 month) ischaemic stroke will be randomised for an 8-week acupuncture or sham acupuncture treatment. The primary outcome will be the Barthel Index for ADL. The secondary outcomes will include the Fugl-Meyer Assessment for motor function; the World Health Organization Quality of Life BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) for QOL; and risk factors that are measured by ambulatory blood pressure, the fasting serum lipid, body mass index and waist circumference. Incidence of adverse events and long-term mortality and recurrence rate during a 10-year and 30-year follow-up will also be investigated. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee of The Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University. Protocol V.3 was approved in June 2013. The results will be disseminated in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at international congresses. The results will also be disseminated to patients by telephone during follow-up calls enquiring on the patient's post-study health status. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ChiCTR-TRC- 13003317; Pre-results

A Pontine Region is a Neural Correlate of the Human Affective Processing Network

The in vivo neural activity of the pons during the perception of affective stimuli has not been studied despite the strong implications of its role in affective processing. To examine the activity of the pons during the viewing of affective stimuli, and to verify its functional and structural connectivity with other affective neural correlates, a multimodal magnetic resonance imaging methodology was employed in this study. We observed the in vivo activity of the pons when viewing affective stimuli. Furthermore, small-world connectivity indicated that the functional connectivity (FC) between the pons and the cortico-limbic affective regions was meaningful, with the coefficient λ being positively associated with self-reported emotional reactivity. The FC between the pons and the cortico-limbic-striatal areas was related to self-reported negative affect. Corroborating this finding was the observation that the tract passing through the pons and the left hippocampus was negatively related to self-reported positive affect and positively correlated with emotional reactivity. Our findings support the framework that the pons works conjunctively with the distributed cortico-limbic-striatal systems in shaping individuals' affective states and reactivity. Our work paves the path for future research on the contribution of the pons to the precipitation and maintenance of affective disorders.published_or_final_versio

Altered Regional and Circuit Resting-State Activity Associated with Unilateral Hearing Loss

The deprivation of sensory input after hearing damage results in functional reorganization of the brain including cross-modal plasticity in the sensory cortex and changes in cognitive processing. However, it remains unclear whether partial deprivation from unilateral auditory loss (UHL) would similarly affect the neural circuitry of cognitive processes in addition to the functional organization of sensory cortex. Here, we used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate intrinsic activity in 34 participants with UHL from acoustic neuroma in comparison with 22 matched normal controls. In sensory regions, we found decreased regional homogeneity (ReHo) in the bilateral calcarine cortices in UHL. However, there was an increase of ReHo in the right anterior insular cortex (rAI), the key node of cognitive control network (CCN) and multimodal sensory integration, as well as in the left parahippocampal cortex (lPHC), a key node in the default mode network (DMN). Moreover, seed-based resting–state functional connectivity analysis showed an enhanced relationship between rAI and several key regions of the DMN. Meanwhile, lPHC showed more negative relationship with components in the CCN and greater positive relationship in the DMN. Such reorganizations of functional connectivity within the DMN and between the DMN and CCN were confirmed by a graph theory analysis. These results suggest that unilateral sensory input damage not only alters the activity of the sensory areas but also reshapes the regional and circuit functional organization of the cognitive control network

Stevioside Prevents Wear Particle-Induced Osteolysis by Inhibiting Osteoclastogenesis and Inflammatory Response via the Suppression of TAK1 Activation

Aseptic loosening and periprosthetic osteolysis are the leading causes of total joint arthroplasty failure, which occurs as a result of chronic inflammatory response and enhanced osteoclast activity. Here we showed that stevioside, a natural compound isolated from Stevia rebaudiana, exhibited preventative effects on titanium particle-induced osteolysis in a mouse calvarial model. Further histological assessment and real-time PCR analysis indicated that stevioside prevented titanium particle-induced osteolysis by inhibiting osteoclast formation and inflammatory cytokine expression in vivo. In vitro, we found that stevioside could suppress RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis and titanium particle-induced inflammatory response in a dose-dependent manner. Mechanistically, stevioside achieved these effects by disrupting the phosphorylation of TAK1 and subsequent activation of NF-κB/MAPKs signaling pathways. Collectively, our data suggest that stevioside effectively suppresses osteoclastogenesis and inflammatory response both in vitro and in vivo, and it might be a potential therapy for particle-induced osteolysis and other osteolytic diseases

HemoglobinA1c Is a Risk Factor for Changes of Bone Mineral Density: A Mendelian Randomization Study

BackgroundAs a valuable blood glucose measurement, HemoglobinA1c (HbA1c) is of great clinical value for diabetes. However, in previous observational studies, studies on its effect on bone mineral density (BMD) have different results. This study aimed to use Mendelian randomization (MR) to assess the effect of HbA1c on bone mineral density and fracture risk, and try to further explore whether this association was achieved through glycemic or non-glycemic factors.MethodsTake HbA1c measurement as exposure, and BMD estimated from quantitative heel ultrasounds (eBMD) and bone fractures as outcomes. Two-Sample MR Analysis was conducted to assess the causal effect of HbA1C on heel BMD and risk fracture. Then, we performed the analysis using two subsets of these variants, one related to glycemic measurement and the other to erythrocyte indices.ResultsGenetically increased HbA1C was associated with the lower heel eBMD [odds ratio (OR) 0.91 (95% CI 0.87, 0.96) per %-unit, P = 3 × 10−4(IVW)]. Higher HbA1C was associated with lower heel eBMD when using only erythrocytic variants [OR 0.87 (0.82, 0.93), P=2× 10−5(IVW)]; However, when using only glycemic variants, this casual association does not hold. In further MR analysis, we test the association of erythrocytic traits with heel eBMD.ConclusionOur study revealed the significant causal effect of HbA1c on eBMD, and this causal link might achieve through non-glycemic pathways (erythrocytic indices)

Free-edge and ply cracking effect in cross-ply laminated composites under uniform extension and thermal loading

The interlaminar stresses and displacements near the free-edges and ply cracks are investigated by using the state space equation method for general cross-ply laminates subjected to extension and/or thermal loading. By this approach, a laminated plate may be composed of an arbitrary number of orthotropic layers, each of which may have different material properties and thickness. The method takes into account all independent material constants and guarantees continuous fields of all interlaminar stresses across interfaces between material layers. Numerical solutions are compared with results obtained from other methods. It is found that the theory provides a satisfactory approximation to the stress singularity occurring in the vicinity of the free-edges and ply cracks. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Experimental and Numerical Study on Mixed Lubrication Performance of Journal Bearing Considering Misalignment and Thermal Effect

The shaft misalignment under mixed lubrication is an important factor affecting the running performance of the bearing, which can occur under heavy load and unsatisfactory assembly. This paper presents a misaligned journal mixed lubrication model coupling for the asperity contact effect, elastic deformation, viscosity–temperature, and viscosity–pressure effect. The finite difference method was employed to calculate the model, and an experimental apparatus designed in this paper was used to test the friction and temperature characteristics of the specimens. The results show that the pressure field, film thickness, and elastic deformation of the bearing conformed to asymmetric distribution along the axial direction under misalignment conditions and there was a notable end side effect. In addition, the frictional force and side leakage flow were evidently enhanced with the increase in the inclination angle in a certain range. The experimental results showed that there was a visible wear phenomenon on the end sides of the bush and shaft. The research results are beneficial for understanding the mixed lubrication mechanism of misaligned journal bearing

Experimental and Numerical Study on Mixed Lubrication Performance of Journal Bearing Considering Misalignment and Thermal Effect

The shaft misalignment under mixed lubrication is an important factor affecting the running performance of the bearing, which can occur under heavy load and unsatisfactory assembly. This paper presents a misaligned journal mixed lubrication model coupling for the asperity contact effect, elastic deformation, viscosity–temperature, and viscosity–pressure effect. The finite difference method was employed to calculate the model, and an experimental apparatus designed in this paper was used to test the friction and temperature characteristics of the specimens. The results show that the pressure field, film thickness, and elastic deformation of the bearing conformed to asymmetric distribution along the axial direction under misalignment conditions and there was a notable end side effect. In addition, the frictional force and side leakage flow were evidently enhanced with the increase in the inclination angle in a certain range. The experimental results showed that there was a visible wear phenomenon on the end sides of the bush and shaft. The research results are beneficial for understanding the mixed lubrication mechanism of misaligned journal bearing

Arthroscopic Bankart repair versus conservative treatment for first-time traumatic anterior shoulder dislocation: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Background Shoulder is vulnerable to dislocation owing to its anatomical structure and the increasing popularity of contact sports in young population. The management of first-time anterior shoulder dislocation in this group is still controversial and the prognosis are varied. This review aimed to compare the results of arthroscopic Bankart repair and conservative management for first-time traumatic anterior shoulder dislocation in young active patients. Methods Databases were searched till November 2021, and comparative studies between arthroscopic Bankart repair and conservative management for first-time traumatic anterior shoulder dislocation in young population were selected. Methodological quality of the studies was assessed according to the Cochrane Back Review Group 12-item scale. Outcome measures included recurrence of instability, return to play, subsequent instability surgery, and shoulder functional scores. Results The search returned 12 eligible trials with 786 participants. All the trials were of prospective design. After arthroscopic Bankart repair, patients experienced significantly less re-dislocation (7.5% vs. 53.0%, p < 0.00001, I 2 = 0%), subluxation (3.1% vs. 24.2%, p < 0.0001, I 2 = 0%), positive apprehension test (7.3% vs. 25.8%, p = 0.002, I 2 = 11%), and subsequent surgical treatment for instability (5.6% vs. 37.8%, p < 0.00001, I 2 = 0%) when compared with those underwent conservative management. And more patients returned to play (83.5% vs. 66.0%, p = 0.03, I 2 = 81%) after arthroscopic Bankart repair. Outcomes regarding the functional scores did not reach a significant difference between the two cohorts. Conclusions Arthroscopic Bankart repair showed superiority over conservative management in terms of recurrence, return to play, and subsequent instability surgery during the follow-up in young active patients that encountered first episode of dislocation. As long-term prognosis is comparable, an immediate surgical stabilization might not be suitable for everyone

Influence of Oxygen Vacancy Behaviors in Cooling Process on Semiconductor Gas Sensors: A Numerical Analysis

The influence of oxygen vacancy behaviors during a cooling process in semiconductor gas sensors is discussed by the numerical analysis method based on the gradient-distributed oxygen vacancy model. A diffusion equation is established to describe the behaviors of oxygen vacancies, which follows the effects of diffusion and exclusion in the cooling process. Numerical analysis is introduced to find the accurate solutions of the diffusion equation. The solutions illustrate the oxygen vacancy distribution profiles, which are dependent on the cooling rate as well as the temperature interval of the cooling process. The gas-sensing characteristics of reduced resistance and response are calculated. Both of them, together with oxygen vacancy distribution, show the grain size effects and the re-annealing effect. It is found that the properties of gas sensors can be controlled or adjusted by the designed cooling process. The proposed model provides a possibility for sensor characteristics simulations, which may be beneficial for the design of gas sensors. A quantitative interpretation on the gas-sensing mechanism of semiconductors has been contributed