Transcranial direct current stimulation regulates phenotypic transformation of microglia to relieve neuropathic pain induced by spinal cord injury

ObjectiveNeuropathic pain is a common complication after spinal cord injury (SCI). Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been confirmed to be effective in relieving neuropathic pain in patients with SCI. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of tDCS on neuropathic pain induced by SCI and its underlying mechanism.Materials and methodsThe SCI model was induced by a clip-compression injury and tDCS stimulation was performed for two courses (5 days/each). The motor function was evaluated by Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) score, and the thermal withdrawal threshold was evaluated by the thermal radiation method. The effects of tDCS on the cerebral cortex, thalamus, midbrain, and medulla were detected by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunofluorescence.ResultsThe results showed that SCI reduced the thermal withdrawal threshold and increased the concentration of inflammatory cytokines in the cortex, thalamus, midbrain, and medulla, including the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and interleukin-6 (IL-6). In addition, the activation of microglia and the proportion of M1 phenotypic polarization increased significantly in the ventral posterolateral (VPL), ventral tegmental (VTA), and periaqueductal gray (PAG) regions after SCI. After tDCS treatment, the thermal withdrawal threshold and motor function of SCI rats were significantly improved compared to the vehicle group. Meanwhile, tDCS effectively reduced the concentration of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the cortex, thalamus, midbrain, and medulla and increased the concentration of anti-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-10 (IL-10) in the thalamus. In addition, tDCS reduced the proportion of the M1 phenotype of microglia in VPL, VTA, and PAG regions and increase the proportion of the M2 phenotype.ConclusionThe results suggest that tDCS can effectively relieve SCI-induced neuropathic pain. Its mechanism may be related to regulating the inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines in corresponding brain regions via promoting the phenotypic transformation of microglia

HAI-178 antibody-conjugated fluorescent magnetic nanoparticles for targeted imaging and simultaneous therapy of gastric cancer

The successful development of safe and highly effective nanoprobes for targeted imaging and simultaneous therapy of in vivo gastric cancer is a great challenge. Herein we reported for the first time that anti-α-subunit of ATP synthase antibody, HAI-178 monoclonal antibody-conjugated fluorescent magnetic nanoparticles, was successfully used for targeted imaging and simultaneous therapy of in vivo gastric cancer. A total of 172 specimens of gastric cancer tissues were collected, and the expression of α-subunit of ATP synthase in gastric cancer tissues was investigated by immunohistochemistry method. Fluorescent magnetic nanoparticles were prepared and conjugated with HAI-178 monoclonal antibody, and the resultant HAI-178 antibody-conjugated fluorescent magnetic nanoparticles (HAI-178-FMNPs) were co-incubated with gastric cancer MGC803 cells and gastric mucous GES-1 cells. Gastric cancer-bearing nude mice models were established, were injected with prepared HAI-178-FMNPs via tail vein, and were imaged by magnetic resonance imaging and small animal fluorescent imaging system. The results showed that the α-subunit of ATP synthase exhibited high expression in 94.7% of the gastric cancer tissues. The prepared HAI-178-FMNPs could target actively MGC803 cells, realized fluorescent imaging and magnetic resonance imaging of in vivo gastric cancer, and actively inhibited growth of gastric cancer cells. In conclusion, HAI-178 antibody-conjugated fluorescent magnetic nanoparticles have a great potential in applications such as targeted imaging and simultaneous therapy of in vivo early gastric cancer cells in the near future

Quantitative 18F-AV1451 Brain Tau PET Imaging in Cognitively Normal Older Adults, Mild Cognitive Impairment, and Alzheimer's Disease Patients

Recent developments of tau Positron Emission Tomography (PET) allows assessment of regional neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) deposition in human brain. Among the tau PET molecular probes, 18F-AV1451 is characterized by high selectivity for pathologic tau aggregates over amyloid plaques, limited non-specific binding in white and gray matter, and confined off-target binding. The objectives of the study are (1) to quantitatively characterize regional brain tau deposition measured by 18F-AV1451 PET in cognitively normal older adults (CN), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and AD participants; (2) to evaluate the correlations between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers or Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and 18F-AV1451 PET standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR); and (3) to evaluate the partial volume effects on 18F-AV1451 brain uptake.Methods: The study included total 115 participants (CN = 49, MCI = 58, and AD = 8) from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI). Preprocessed 18F-AV1451 PET images, structural MRIs, and demographic and clinical assessments were downloaded from the ADNI database. A reblurred Van Cittertiteration method was used for voxelwise partial volume correction (PVC) on PET images. Structural MRIs were used for PET spatial normalization and region of interest (ROI) definition in standard space. The parametric images of 18F-AV1451 SUVR relative to cerebellum were calculated. The ROI SUVR measurements from PVC and non-PVC SUVR images were compared. The correlation between ROI 18F-AV1451 SUVR and the measurements of MMSE, CSF total tau (t-tau), and phosphorylated tau (p-tau) were also assessed.Results:18F-AV1451 prominently specific binding was found in the amygdala, entorhinal cortex, parahippocampus, fusiform, posterior cingulate, temporal, parietal, and frontal brain regions. Most regional SUVRs showed significantly higher uptake of 18F-AV1451 in AD than MCI and CN participants. SUVRs of small regions like amygdala, entorhinal cortex and parahippocampus were statistically improved by PVC in all groups (p < 0.01). Although there was an increasing tendency of 18F-AV-1451 SUVRs in MCI group compared with CN group, no significant difference of 18F-AV1451 deposition was found between CN and MCI brains with or without PVC (p > 0.05). Declined MMSE score was observed with increasing 18F-AV1451 binding in amygdala, entorhinal cortex, parahippocampus, and fusiform. CSF p-tau was positively correlated with 18F-AV1451 deposition. PVC improved the results of 18F-AV-1451 tau deposition and correlation studies in small brain regions.Conclusion: The typical deposition of 18F-AV1451 tau PET imaging in AD brain was found in amygdala, entorhinal cortex, fusiform and parahippocampus, and these regions were strongly associated with cognitive impairment and CSF biomarkers. Although more deposition was observed in MCI group, the 18F-AV-1451 PET imaging could not differentiate the MCI patients from CN population. More tau deposition related to decreased MMSE score and increased level of CSF p-tau, especially in ROIs of amygdala, entorhinal cortex and parahippocampus. PVC did improve the results of tau deposition and correlation studies in small brain regions and suggest to be routinely used in 18F-AV1451 tau PET quantification

Effects of Protonation and C5 Methylation on the Electrophilic Addition Reaction of Cytosine: A Computational Study

The mechanism for the effects of protonation and C5 methylation on the electrophilic addition reaction of Cyt has been explored by means of CBS-QB3 and CBS-QB3/PCM methods. In the gas phase, three paths, two protonated paths (N3 and O2 protonated paths B and C) as well as one neutral path (path A), were mainly discussed, and the calculated results indicate that the reaction of the HSO₃^– group with neutral Cyt is unlikely because of its high activation free energy, whereas O2-protonated path (path C) is the most likely to occur. In the aqueous phase, path B is the most feasible mechanism to account for the fact that the activation free energy of path B decreases compared with the corresponding path in the gas phase, whereas those of paths A and C increase. The main striking results are that the HSO₃^– group directly interacts with the C5C6 bond rather than the N3C4 bond and that the C5 methylation, compared with Cyt, by decreasing values of global electrophilicity index manifests that C5 methylation forms are less electrophilic power as well as by decreasing values of NPA charges on C5 site of the intermediates make the trend of addition reaction weaken, which is in agreement with the experimental observation that the rate of 5-MeCyt reaction is approximately 2 orders of magnitude slower than that of Cyt in the presence of bisulfite. Apart from cis and trans isomers, the rare third isomer where both the CH₃ and SO₃ occupy axial positions has been first found in the reactions of neutral and protonated 5-MeCyt with the HSO₃^– group. Furthermore, the transformation of the third isomer from the cis isomer can occur easily

Reactivity of 5-carboxycytosine toward addition and hydrogen abstraction by ·OH in acetonitrile: a computational study

<p>Two distinct mechanisms of -mediated 5-carboxylcytosine (5-caCyt) at the CBS-QB3 approach with polarizable continuum model in acetonitrile have firstly been explored, the addition reaction (paths R1 and R2), the H-atom abstraction reaction (paths R3-R6), respectively. It indicates that the addition of to the C5 = C6 double bond of 5-caCyt remains more favourable than the H-atom abstraction, whether in the gas or aqueous phase. Meanwhile, there is a little difference in the free energy barrier between acetonitrile and water, showing that the solvent has small impact on the reactivity of -mediated 5-caCyt.</p

Construction of Ru Single-Atoms on Ceria to Reform the Products of CO₂ Photoreduction

Highly selective production of CH4 from photocatalytic CO2 reduction is still a great challenge which involves the kinetically unfavorable transfers of 8 protons and 8 electrons. Herein, CeO2 photocatalysts incorporated with isolated Ru single-atoms have been fabricated, which demonstrate dramatically elevated selectivity of CH4 from CO2 reduction. The introduced Ru single-atoms promote carrier separation and accelerate electron transfer, which efficiently enhances the photocatalytic activity. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations and in situ FT-IR analysis manifest that the Ru single-atom active sites play an indispensable role in strengthening the adsorption of *CO intermediate on the catalyst surface and promoting H2O oxidation to generate abundant protons, thus favoring *CO protonation into *CHxO (x = 1, 2, 3) species and final deoxygenation into CH4. This work provides an effective strategy by constructing single-atom active sites to modulate and stabilize the key intermediates of CO2 photoreduction to improve the selectivity of the target products

Carbon-vacancy modified graphitic carbon nitride: enhanced CO2 photocatalytic reduction performance and mechanism probing

The obstacles to achieving high CO2 photoreduction performance on graphitic carbon nitride (GCN) are commonly ascribed to its weak CO2 activation capability and low charge carrier concentration. To overcome these obstacles, here we report a new class of GCN with C vacancies intentionally introduced by heat treatment in an NH3 atmosphere. GCN with enriched C vacancies exhibits more than two times higher CO2-to-CO conversion rate than pristine GCN. Our detailed characterization reveals that the improved CO2 reduction performance of this carbon-vacancy modified GCN is attributed to the enhanced CO2 adsorption/activation, upshifted conduction band and elevated charge carrier concentration and lifetime. Moreover, we discover that the introduction of C vacancies into GCN could attenuate the exciton-effect and favor the charge carrier generation. These results not only provide insights on regulating the structure of GCN to promote its CO2 photoreduction performance, but also pave the way to tune the exciton effect and charge carrier concentration in GCN to facilitate photoinduced electron–hole separation and charge-carrier-involved photocatalytic reaction