Scutellarin Attenuates Hypertension-Induced Expression of Brain Toll-Like Receptor 4/Nuclear Factor Kappa B

Hypertension is associated with low-grade inflammation, and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) has been shown to be linked to the development and maintenance of hypertension. This study aimed to investigate the effects of scutellarin (administered by oral gavage daily for 2 weeks) on brain TLR4/nuclear factor kappa B-(NF-κB-) mediated inflammation and blood pressure in renovascular hypertensive (using the 2-kidney, 2-clip method) rats. Immunofluorescence and western immunoblot analyses revealed that hypertension contributed to the activation of TLR4 and NF-κB, accompanied by significantly enhanced expression of proinflammatory mediators, such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and interleukin-18 (IL-18). Furthermore, expression of the antiapoptotic protein, myeloid cell leukemia-1 (Mcl1), was decreased, and the pro-apoptotic proteins, Bax and cleavedcaspase-3 p17 were increased in combined cerebral cortical/striatal soluble lysates. Scutellarin significantly lowered blood pressure and attenuated the number of activated microglia and macrophages in brains of hypertensive rats. Furthermore, scutellarin significantly reduced the expression of TLR4, NF-κB p65, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-18, Bax and cleaved-caspase-3 p17, and increased the expression of Mcl1. Overall, these results revealed that scutellarin exhibits anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic properties and decreases blood pressure in hypertensive rats. Therefore, scutellarin may be a potential therapeutic agent in hypertension-associated diseases

Current evidence, clinical applications, and future directions of transcranial magnetic stimulation as a treatment for ischemic stroke

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive brain neurostimulation technique that can be used as one of the adjunctive treatment techniques for neurological recovery after stroke. Animal studies have shown that TMS treatment of rats with middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model reduced cerebral infarct volume and improved neurological dysfunction in model rats. In addition, clinical case reports have also shown that TMS treatment has positive neuroprotective effects in stroke patients, improving a variety of post-stroke neurological deficits such as motor function, swallowing, cognitive function, speech function, central post-stroke pain, spasticity, and other post-stroke sequelae. However, even though numerous studies have shown a neuroprotective effect of TMS in stroke patients, its possible neuroprotective mechanism is not clear. Therefore, in this review, we describe the potential mechanisms of TMS to improve neurological function in terms of neurogenesis, angiogenesis, anti-inflammation, antioxidant, and anti-apoptosis, and provide insight into the current clinical application of TMS in multiple neurological dysfunctions in stroke. Finally, some of the current challenges faced by TMS are summarized and some suggestions for its future research directions are made

Segawa syndrome caused by TH gene mutation and its mechanism

Dopa-responsive dystonia (DRD), also known as Segawa syndrome, is a rare neurotransmitter disease. The decrease in dopamine caused by tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) gene mutation may lead to dystonia, tremor and severe encephalopathy in children. Although the disease caused by recessive genetic mutation of the tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) gene is rare, we found that the clinical manifestations of seven children with tyrosine hydroxylase gene mutations are similar to dopa-responsive dystonia. To explore the clinical manifestations and possible pathogenesis of the disease, we analyzed the clinical data of seven patients. Next-generation sequencing showed that the TH gene mutation in three children was a reported homozygous mutation (c.698G>A). At the same time, two new mutations of the TH gene were found in other children: c.316_317insCGT, and c.832G>A (p.Ala278Thr). We collected venous blood from four patients with Segawa syndrome and their parents for real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis of TH gene expression. We predicted the structure and function of proteins on the missense mutation iterative thread assembly refinement (I-TASSER) server and studied the conservation of protein mutation sites. Combined with molecular biology experiments and related literature analysis, the qPCR results of two patients showed that the expression of the TH gene was lower than that in 10 normal controls, and the expression of the TH gene of one mother was lower than the average expression level. We speculated that mutation in the TH gene may clinically manifest by affecting the production of dopamine and catecholamine downstream, which enriches the gene pool of Segawa syndrome. At the same time, the application of levodopa is helpful to the study, diagnosis and treatment of Segawa syndrome

Comprehensive Evaluation of Circular Economic Development in North Anhui Province

In view of the characteristics of north Anhui Province, an index system was constructed for evaluating the development level of circular economy according to relevant principles, Principal Component Analysis and Analytic Hierarchy Process were adopted to evaluate the circular economic development in north Anhui Province, and corresponding measures were put forward to promote the circular economy in north Anhui Province

INTERACTION BETWEEN ANTARCTIC SEA ICE AND ENSO EVENTS

In this paper, the theory of the cross-coupled correlation-resonance of two wave spectra is used to study the interaction between Antarctic sea ice and ENSO events. It is found that : (1) The principal period of the correlation time series oscillation is usually coincident with the principal period of sea ice itself. If the same periods of two elements were in resonance, the correlation oscillation period would be more significant. (2) The sea ice of the Ross Sea area with its principal period of quasi-11 years has a strong cross correlation oscillation with SSTA of Nino 4. Their common period produces a resonance from 96 months leading to 36 months lagging causing a sine-shaped correlation variation with a strong positive SSTA from 87 to 50 months leading and a strong negative one from 20 months leading to 24 months lagging. (3) The same is true for the Weddell Sea ice and SSTA of the central-eastern equatorial Pacific but with a common period of quasi-5 years. ENSO events have a good correlation with sea ice in the eastern Antarctic in their later stage. The feedback of sea ice to SSTA in the western equatorial Pacific is also significant with a quasi-5 year period, but it is very weak to SSTA of the central-eastern equatorial Pacific. SST of the central equatorial Pacific has a quasi-contemporary oscillation relationship with Ross Sea ice and a 1.5 years lag oscillation relationship with Weddell Sea ice. We call this oscillation relationship between Antarctic sea ice and ENSO events, the Southern Oceanic Oscillation (SOO)

Comprehensive Evaluation of Circular Economic Development in North Anhui Province

In view of the characteristics of north Anhui Province, an index system was constructed for evaluating the development level of circular economy according to relevant principles, Principal Component Analysis and Analytic Hierarchy Process were adopted to evaluate the circular economic development in north Anhui Province, and corresponding measures were put forward to promote the circular economy in north Anhui Province.Circular economy, Evaluation system, Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), North Anhui Province, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Characterizing Post-Fire Forest Structure Recovery in the Great Xing’an Mountain Using GEDI and Time Series Landsat Data

Understanding post-fire forest recovery is critical to the study of forest carbon dynamics. Many previous studies have used multispectral imagery to estimate post-fire recovery, yet post-fire forest structural development has rarely been evaluated in the Great Xing’an Mountain. In this study, we extracted the historical fire events from 1987 to 2019 based on a classification of Landsat imagery and assessed post-fire forest structure for these burned patches using Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI)-derived metrics from 2019 to 2021. Two drivers were assessed for the influence on post-fire structure recovery, these being pre-fire canopy cover (i.e., dense forest and open forest) and burn severity levels (i.e., low, moderate, and high). We used these burnt patches to establish a 25-year chronosequence of forest structural succession by a space-for-time substitution method. Our result showed that the structural indices suggested delayed recovery following the fire, indicating a successional process from the decomposition of residual structures to the regeneration of new tree species in the post-fire forest. Across the past 25-years, the dense forest tends toward greater recovery than open forest, and the recovery rate was faster for low severity, followed by moderate severity and high severity. Specifically, in the recovery trajectory, the recovery indices were 21.7% and 17.4% for dense forest and open forest, and were 27.1%, 25.8%, and 25.4% for low, moderate, and high burn severity, respectively. Additionally, a different response to the fire was found in the canopy structure and height structure since total canopy cover (TCC) and plant area index (PAI) recovered faster than relative height (i.e., RH75 and RH95). Our results provide valuable information on forest structural restoration status, that can be used to support the formulation of post-fire forest management strategies in Great Xing’an Mountain

Exosome in Crosstalk between Inflammation and Angiogenesis: A Potential Therapeutic Strategy for Stroke

The endothelial dysfunction, associated with inflammation and vascular permeability, remains the key event in the pathogenesis of cerebral ischemic stroke. Angiogenesis is essential for neuroprotection and neural repair following stroke. The neuroinflammatory reaction plays a vital role in stroke, and inhibition of inflammation contributes to establishing an appropriate external environment for angiogenesis. Exosomes are the heterogeneous population of extracellular vesicles which play critical roles in intercellular communication through transmitting various proteins and nucleic acids to nearby and distant recipient cells by body fluids and circulation. Recent reports have shown that exosomal therapy is a valuable and potential treatment strategy for stroke. In this review, we discussed the exosomes in complex interaction mechanisms of angiogenesis and inflammation following stroke as well as the challenges of exosomal studies such as secretion, uptake, modification, and application