Sexual attraction enhances glutamate transmission in mammalian anterior cingulate cortex

Functional human brain imaging studies have indicated the essential role of cortical regions, such as the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), in romantic love and sex. However, the neurobiological basis of how the ACC neurons are activated and engaged in sexual attraction remains unknown. Using transgenic mice in which the expression of green fluorescent protein (GFP) is controlled by the promoter of the activity-dependent gene c-fos, we found that ACC pyramidal neurons are activated by sexual attraction. The presynaptic glutamate release to the activated neurons is increased and pharmacological inhibition of neuronal activities in the ACC reduced the interest of male mice to female mice. Our results present direct evidence of the critical role of the ACC in sexual attraction, and long-term increases in glutamate mediated excitatory transmission may contribute to sexual attraction between male and female mice

In vivo whole-cell patch-clamp recording of sensory synaptic responses of cingulate pyramidal neurons to noxious mechanical stimuli in adult mice

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) plays important roles in emotion, learning, memory and persistent pain. Our previous in vitro studies have demonstrated that pyramidal neurons in layer II/III of the adult mouse ACC can be characterized into three types: regular spiking (RS), intermediate (IM) and intrinsic bursting (IB) cells, according to their action potential (AP) firing patterns. However, no in vivo information is available for the intrinsic properties and sensory responses of ACC neurons of adult mice. Here, we performed in vivo whole-cell patch-clamp recordings from pyramidal neurons in adult mice ACC under urethane anesthetized conditions. First, we classified the intrinsic properties and analyzed their slow oscillations. The population ratios of RS, IM and IB cells were 10, 62 and 28%, respectively. The mean spontaneous APs frequency of IB cells was significantly greater than those of RS and IM cells, while the slow oscillations were similar among ACC neurons. Peripheral noxious pinch stimuli induced evoked spike responses in all three types of ACC neurons. Interestingly, IB cells showed significantly greater firing frequencies than RS and IM cells. In contrast, non-noxious brush did not induce any significant response. Our studies provide the first in vivo characterization of ACC neurons in adult mice, and demonstrate that ACC neurons are indeed nociceptive. These findings support the critical roles of ACC in nociception, from mice to humans

Graph Convolutional Network with Connectivity Uncertainty for EEG-based Emotion Recognition

Automatic emotion recognition based on multichannel Electroencephalography (EEG) holds great potential in advancing human-computer interaction. However, several significant challenges persist in existing research on algorithmic emotion recognition. These challenges include the need for a robust model to effectively learn discriminative node attributes over long paths, the exploration of ambiguous topological information in EEG channels and effective frequency bands, and the mapping between intrinsic data qualities and provided labels. To address these challenges, this study introduces the distribution-based uncertainty method to represent spatial dependencies and temporal-spectral relativeness in EEG signals based on Graph Convolutional Network (GCN) architecture that adaptively assigns weights to functional aggregate node features, enabling effective long-path capturing while mitigating over-smoothing phenomena. Moreover, the graph mixup technique is employed to enhance latent connected edges and mitigate noisy label issues. Furthermore, we integrate the uncertainty learning method with deep GCN weights in a one-way learning fashion, termed Connectivity Uncertainty GCN (CU-GCN). We evaluate our approach on two widely used datasets, namely SEED and SEEDIV, for emotion recognition tasks. The experimental results demonstrate the superiority of our methodology over previous methods, yielding positive and significant improvements. Ablation studies confirm the substantial contributions of each component to the overall performance.Comment: 10 page

Comprehensive analysis of copper-metabolism-related genes about prognosis and immune microenvironment in osteosarcoma

Abstract Despite being significant in various diseases, including cancers, the impact of copper metabolism on osteosarcoma (OS) remains largely unexplored. This study aimed to use bioinformatics analyses to identify a reliable copper metabolism signature that could improve OS patient prognosis prediction, immune landscape understanding, and drug sensitivity. Through nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF) clustering, we revealed distinct prognosis-associated clusters of OS patients based on copper metabolism-related genes (CMRGs), showing differential gene expression linked to immune processes. The risk model, comprising 13 prognostic CMRGs, was established using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression, closely associated with the OS microenvironment's immune situation and drug sensitivity. Furthermore, we developed an integrated nomogram, combining the risk score and clinical traits to quantitatively predict OS patient prognosis. The calibration plot, timeROC, and timeROC analyses demonstrated its predictable accuracy and clinical usefulness. Finally, we identified three independent prognostic signatures for OS patients: COX11, AP1B1, and ABCB6. This study confirmed the involvement of CMRGs in OS patient prognosis, immune processes, and drug sensitivity, suggesting their potential as promising prognostic signatures and therapeutic targets for OS

Effects of the Combined Application of Trimethylated Chitosan and Carbodiimide on the Biostability and Antibacterial Activity of Dentin Collagen Matrix

The structural integrity of a dentin matrix that has been demineralized by the clinical use of etchants or calcium-depleting endodontic irrigants, such as endodontic ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), is often deteriorated due to the collagenolytic activities of reactivated endogenous enzymes as well as the infiltration of extrinsic bacteria. Therefore, the biomodification of dentin collagen with improved stability and antibacterial activity holds great promise in conservative dentistry. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of the combined application of trimethylated chitosan (TMC) and 1-ethyl-3-[3-dimethylaminopropyl]carbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC) on the biostability and antibacterial activity of the demineralized dentin collagen matrix. The morphological changes in the collagen matrix were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the amount of TMC adsorbed on the collagen surface was detected by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and the elastic modulus was measured by a three-point bending device. Dry weight loss and amino acid release were detected to evaluate its anti-collagenase degradation performance. The antibacterial performance was detected by confocal microscopy. The TMC-treated group had less collagen space and a more compact collagen arrangement, while the untreated group had a looser collagen arrangement. The combined application of TMC and EDC can increase the elastic modulus, reduce the loss of elastic modulus, and result in good antibacterial performance. The current study proved that a dentin collagen matrix biomodified by TMC and EDC showed improved biodegradation resistance and antibacterial activities

Cux1+ proliferative basal cells promote epidermal hyperplasia in chronic dry skin disease identified by single-cell RNA transcriptomics

Pathological dry skin is a disturbing and intractable healthcare burden, characterized by epithelial hyperplasia and severe itch. Atopic dermatitis (AD) and psoriasis models with complications of dry skin have been studied using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq). However, scRNA-seq analysis of the dry skin mouse model (acetone/ether/water (AEW)-treated model) is still lacking. Here, we used scRNA-seq and in situ hybridization to identify a novel proliferative basal cell (PBC) state that exclusively expresses transcription factor CUT-like homeobox 1 (Cux1). Further in vitro study demonstrated that Cux1 is vital for keratinocyte proliferation by regulating a series of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) and cyclins. Clinically, Cux1+ PBCs were increased in patients with psoriasis, suggesting that Cux1+ PBCs play an important part in epidermal hyperplasia. This study presents a systematic knowledge of the transcriptomic changes in a chronic dry skin mouse model, as well as a potential therapeutic target against dry skin-related dermatoses

Biomechanical effects of hybrid constructions in the treatment of noncontinuous cervical spondylopathy: a finite element analysis

Abstract Background Hybrid construction (HC) may be an ideal surgical strategy than noncontinuous total disc replacement (TDR) and noncontinuous anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in the treatment of noncontinuous cervical spondylopathy. However, there is still no consensus on the segmental selection for ACDF or TDR in HC. The study aims to analyse the effects of different segment selection of TDR and ACDF on cervical biomechanical characteristics after HC surgery. Methods Twelve FEMs of C2–C7 were constructed based on CT images of 12 mild cervical spondylopathy volunteers. Two kinds of HC were introduced in our study: Fusion-arthroplasty group (Group 1), upper-level (C3/4) ACDF, and lower-level TDR (C5/6); Arthroplasty-fusion group (Group 2), upper-level (C3/4) TDR and lower-level ACDF (C5/6). The follow-load technique was simulated by applying an axial initial load of 73.6 N through the motion centre of FEM. A bending moment of 1.0 Nm was applied to the centre of C2 in all FEMs. Statistical analysis was carried out by SPSS 26.0. The significance threshold was 5% (P < 0.05). Results In the comparison of ROMs between Group 1 and Group 2, the ROM in extension (P = 0.016), and lateral bending (P = 0.038) of C4/5 were significantly higher in Group 1 group. The average intervertebral disc pressures at C2/3 in all directions were significantly higher in Group 1 than those in Group 2 (P < 0.005). The average contact forces in facet joints of C2/3 (P = 0.007) were significantly more than that in Group 2; however, the average contact forces in facet joints of C6/7 (P < 0.001) in Group 1 group were significantly less than that in Group 2. Conclusions Arthroplasty-fusion is preferred for intervertebral disc degeneration in adjacent upper segments. Fusion-arthroplasty is preferred for patients with lower intervertebral disc degeneration or lower posterior column degeneration. Trial registration: This research was registered in Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR1900020513)

Genome-Wide Identification of SMXL Gene Family in Soybean and Expression Analysis of GmSMXLs under Shade Stress

SMXL6,7,8 are important target proteins in strigolactone (SL) signal pathway, which negatively regulate the reception and response of SL signal, and play an important role in regulating plant branching. However, there is a relative lack of research on soybean SMXL gene family. In this study, 31 soybean SMXL genes were identified by phylogenetic analysis and divided into three groups. Based on the analysis of GmSMXL gene&rsquo;s structure and motif composition, it was found that the GmSMXL members in the same group were similar. The results of cis-element analysis showed that GmSMXL genes may regulate the growth and development of soybean by responding to hormones and environment. Based on the tissue specificity analysis and GR24 treatment, the results showed that four GmSMXLs in G1 group were predominantly expressed in stems, axillary buds and leaves and involved in SL signal pathway. Finally, under shading stress, the expression of four genes in G1 group was slightly different in different varieties, which may be the reason for the difference in branching ability of different varieties under shading stress. We have systematically studied the SMXL gene family in soybean, which may lay a foundation for the study of the function of GmSMXL gene in the future