The Gain Modulation by N-methyl-D-aspartate in the Projection Neurons of Robust Nucleus of the Arcopallium in Adult Zebra Finches

The song of zebra finch is stable in life after it was learned successfully. Vocal plasticity is thought to be a motor exploration that can support continuous learning and optimization of performance. The activity of RA, an important pre-motor nucleus in songbird's brain, influences the song directly. This variability in adult birdsong is associated with the activity of NMDA receptors in LMAN-RA synapses, but the detailed mechanism is unclear. The control of gain refers to modulation of a neuron's responsiveness to input and is critically important for normal sensory, cognitive, and motor functions. Here, we observed the change of gain in RA projection neurons after exogenous NMDA was applied to activate NMDA receptors using the whole-cell current clamp recording. We found that NMDA substantially increased the slope (gain) of the firing rate-current relationship in RA projection neurons. The AMPA receptor-dependent excitability played a crucial role in the modulation of gain by NMDA. These results suggested that NMDA receptors may regulate the dynamics of RA projection neurons by input-output gain

A Novel Paclitaxel Microemulsion Containing a Reduced Amount of Cremophor EL: Pharmacokinetics, Biodistribution, and In Vivo

The purpose of this study was to prepare a novel paclitaxel (PTX) microemulsion containing a reduced amount of Cremophor EL (CrEL) which had similar pharmacokinetics and antitumor efficacy as the commercially available PTX injection, but a significantly reduced allergic effect due to the CrEL. The pharmacokinetics, biodistribution, in vivo antitumor activity and safety of PTX microemulsion was evaluated. The results of pharmacokinetic and distribution properties of PTX in the microemulsion were similar to those of the PTX injection. The antitumor efficacy of the PTX microemulsion in OVCRA-3 and A 549 tumor-bearing animals was similar to that of PTX injection. The PTX microemulsion did not cause haemolysis, erythrocyte agglutination or simulative reaction. The incidence and degree of allergic reactions exhibited by the PTX microemulsion group, with or without premedication, were significantly lower than those in the PTX injection group (P < .01). In conclusion, the PTX microemulsion had similar pharmacokinetics and anti-tumor efficacy to the PTX injection, but a significantly reduced allergic effect due to CrEL, indicating that the PTX microemulsion overcomes the disadvantages of the conventional PTX injection and is one way of avoiding the limitations of current injection product while providing suitable therapeutic efficacy

A new score system for predicting response to cardiac resynchronization therapy

Background: The aim of this study was to establish a score system derived from clinical, echocardiographic and electrocardiographic indexes and evaluate its clinical value for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) patient selection. Methods: Ninety-three patients receiving CRT were enrolled. A patient selection score system was generated by the clinical, echocardiographic and electrocardiographic parameters achieving a significant level by univariate and multivariate Cox regression model. The positive response to CRT was a left ventricular end systolic volume decrease of ≥ 15% and not reaching primary clinical endpoint (death or re-hospitalization for heart failure) at the end of follow-up. Results: Thirty-nine patients were CRT non-responders (41.94%) and 54 were responders (58.06%). A 4-point score system was generated based on tricuspid annular plane systolic ex­cursion (TAPSE), longitudinal strain (LS), and complete left bundle branch block (CLBBB) combined with a wide QRS duration (QRSd). The sensitivity and specificity for prediction of a positive response to CRT at a score &gt; 2 were 0.823 and 0.850, respectively (AUC: 0.92295% CI 0.691–0.916, p&lt; 0.001). Conclusions: A patient selection score system based on the integration of TAPSE, LS and CLBBB combined with a wide QRSd can help to predict positive response to CRT effectively and reliably

Layer-specific strain in patients with cardiac amyloidosis using tissue tracking MR

BackgroundCardiac infiltration is the major predictor of poor prognosis in patients with systemic amyloidosis, thus it becomes of great importance to evaluate cardiac involvement.PurposeWe aimed to evaluate left ventricular myocardial deformation alteration in patients with cardiac amyloidosis (CA) using layer-specific tissue tracking MR.Material and MethodsThirty-nine patients with CA were enrolled. Thirty-nine normal controls were also recruited. Layer-specific tissue tracking analysis was done based on cine MR images.ResultsCompared with the control group, a significant reduction in LV whole layer strain values (GLS, GCS, and GRS) and layer-specific strain values was found in patients with CA (all P &lt; 0.01). In addition, GRS and GLS, as well as subendocardial and subepicardial GLS, GRS, and GCS, were all diminished in patients with CA and reduced LVEF, when compared to those with preserved or mid-range LVEF (all P &lt; 0.05). GCS showed the largest AUC (0.9952, P = 0.0001) with a sensitivity of 93.1% and specificity of 90% to predict reduced LVEF (&lt;40%). Moreover, GCS was the only independent predictor of LV systolic dysfunction (Odds Ratio: 3.30, 95% CI:1.341–8.12, and P = 0.009).ConclusionLayer-specific tissue tracking MR could be a useful method to assess left ventricular myocardial deformation in patients with CA

Assessment of iris volume in glaucoma patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus by AS-OCT

AIM: To examine the change of iris volume measured by CASIA2 anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) in glaucoma patients with or without type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and explore if there is a correlation between hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) level and iris volume. METHODS: In a cross-sectional study, 72 patients (115 eyes) were divided into two groups: primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) group (55 eyes) and primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG) group (60 eyes). Patients in each group were separately classified into patients with or without T2DM. Iris volume and glycosylated HbA1c level were measured and analyzed. RESULTS: In the PACG group, diabetic patients' iris volume was significantly lower than those of non-diabetics (P=0.02), and there was a significant correlation between iris volume and HbA1c level in the PACG group (r=-0.26, P=0.04). However, diabetic POAG patients' iris volume was noticeably higher than those of non-diabetics (P=0.01), and there was a significant correlation between HbA1c level and iris volume (r=0.32, P=0.02). CONCLUSION: Diabetes mellitus impact iris volume size, as seen by increased iris volume in the POAG group and decreased iris volume in the PACG group. In addition, iris volume is significantly correlated with HbA1c level in glaucoma patients. These findings imply that T2DM may compromise iris ultrastructure in glaucoma patients

Ultrafast dynamics of wavelength-sensitive magnons in unconventional compensated semiconducting antiferromagnet

Antiferromagnet is a promising candidate for the next generation spintronic devices, benefiting from its ultrafast dynamics and spontaneous zero stray field. However, the understanding of their ultrafast spin behaviors is lacking due to the challenges of controlling/detecting the quenched net magnetization. Unconventional compensated semiconducting antiferromagnets present strong time-reversal symmetry breaking, spin splitting in the momentum space, and suitable bandgap for optical control/detection. Thus, it is a powerful platform to uncover the ultrafast dynamics of antiferromagnets. Here, we show an exotic wavelength-dependent spin dynamic in the unconventional compensated semiconducting antiferromagnet {\alpha}-MnTe via time-resolved quadratic magneto-optical Kerr effect measurement, where the probing photon energy of the laser matches its bandgap. This direct excitation and detection of distinct magnon modes reveal varying spin behaviors and time characteristics in a broad temperature range. It originates from the spins triggered at different bands of electronic structures and is depicted in an energy transfer model among electrons, phonons, and magnons. Our study of exotic optical properties in this unconventional semiconducting antiferromagnet fulfills the missing information of spin evolution in the time domain and paves the way for its utilization in ultrafast spintronic devices

Giant Hall Switching by Surface-State-Mediated Spin-Orbit Torque in a Hard Ferromagnetic Topological Insulator

Topological insulators (TI) can apply highly efficient spin-orbit torque (SOT) and manipulate the magnetization with their unique topological surface states, and their magnetic counterparts, magnetic topological insulators (MTI) offer magnetization without shunting and are one of the highest in SOT efficiency. Here, we demonstrate efficient SOT switching of a hard MTI, V-doped (Bi,Sb)2Te3 (VBST) with a large coercive field that can prevent the influence of an external magnetic field and a small magnetization to minimize stray field. A giant switched anomalous Hall resistance of 9.2 $k\Omega$ is realized, among the largest of all SOT systems. The SOT switching current density can be reduced to $2.8\times10^5 A/cm^2$, and the switching ratio can be enhanced to 60%. Moreover, as the Fermi level is moved away from the Dirac point by both gate and composition tuning, VBST exhibits a transition from edge-state-mediated to surface-state-mediated transport, thus enhancing the SOT effective field to $1.56\pm 0.12 T/ (10^6 A/cm^2)$ and the spin Hall angle to $23.2\pm 1.8$ at 5 K. The findings establish VBST as an extraordinary candidate for energy-efficient magnetic memory devices

Paternal genetic affinity between western Austronesians and Daic populations

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Austronesian is a linguistic family spread in most areas of the Southeast Asia, the Pacific Ocean, and the Indian Ocean. Based on their linguistic similarity, this linguistic family included Malayo-Polynesians and Taiwan aborigines. The linguistic similarity also led to the controversial hypothesis that Taiwan is the homeland of all the Malayo-Polynesians, a hypothesis that has been debated by ethnologists, linguists, archaeologists, and geneticists. It is well accepted that the Eastern Austronesians (Micronesians and Polynesians) derived from the Western Austronesians (Island Southeast Asians and Taiwanese), and that the Daic populations on the mainland are supposed to be the headstream of all the Austronesian populations.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In this report, we studied 20 SNPs and 7 STRs in the non-recombining region of the 1,509 Y chromosomes from 30 China Daic populations, 23 Indonesian and Vietnam Malayo-Polynesian populations, and 11 Taiwan aboriginal populations. These three groups show many resemblances in paternal lineages. Admixture analyses demonstrated that the Daic populations are hardly influenced by Han Chinese genetically, and that they make up the largest proportion of Indonesians. Most of the population samples contain a high frequency of haplogroup O1a-M119, which is nearly absent in other ethnic families. The STR network of haplogroup O1a* illustrated that Indonesian lineages did not derive from Taiwan aborigines as linguistic studies suggest, but from Daic populations.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We show that, in contrast to the Taiwan homeland hypothesis, the Island Southeast Asians do not have a Taiwan origin based on their paternal lineages. Furthermore, we show that both Taiwan aborigines and Indonesians likely derived from the Daic populations based on their paternal lineages. These two populations seem to have evolved independently of each other. Our results indicate that a super-phylum, which includes Taiwan aborigines, Daic, and Malayo-Polynesians, is genetically educible.</p

Upfront Cranial Radiotherapy vs. EGFR Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors Alone for the Treatment of Brain Metastases From Non-small-cell Lung Cancer: A Meta-Analysis of 1465 Patients

Background: Epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) is revolutionizing the management of brain metastases (BMs). This study was to explore the value of upfront cranial radiotherapy (RT) in EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with BMs compared with EGFR-TKIs alone.Methods: We searched all topic-related comparative articles in public databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science) and conference proceedings. Outcomes of interest were intracranial objective response rate (ORR), overall survival (OS), and intracranial progression-free survival (PFS). Statistical analyses were calculated using Review Manager 5.3 software.Results: Thirteen comparative studies that included a total of 1,456 patients were eligible. Upfront brain RT had significantly higher OS (HR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.65–0.93, P = 0.005) than EGFR-TKI alone. Upfront RT plus TKI had superior OS (HR = 0.71, 95% CI = 0.58–0.86, P = 0.0005) and intracranial PFS (HR = 0.69, 95% CI = 0.49–0.99, P = 0.04). The pooled data favored upfront whole brain RT (WBRT) plus TKI in terms of intracranial PFS (HR = 0.64, 95% CI = 0.48–0.85, P = 0.002) and OS (HR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.57–1, P = 0.05). Upfront stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) was associated with better OS (HR = 0.37, 95% CI = 0.26–0.54, P &lt; 0.00001). Similar results were observed when analysis was restricted to the use of erlotinib or geftinib.Conclusions: The upfront use of brain RT seemed critical, especially for SRS. Upfront administration of upfront WBRT plus EGFR-TKI had better survival outcomes and seemed superior to EGFR-TKI alone

CHINESE HERBAL DECOCTION AS A COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY FOR ATROPHIC GASTRITIS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS

Background: Chinese herbal decoction (CHD) has been extensively used in the treatment of atrophic gastritis (AG) in China and other Far Eastern countries. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the efficacy and safety of CHD in AG. Materials and Methods: Pubmed, Embase, Cochrane central register of controlled trials (central), VIP, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Sinomed, Wanfang data were searched (up to December 2015). Randomized controlled trials recruiting patients with AG comparing CHD (alone or with western medicine (WM)) with WM were eligible. Dichotomous data were pooled to obtain relative risk (RR), with a 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: Forty-two articles including 3,874 patients were identified. CHD, used alone or with WM, had beneficial effect over WM in the improvement of clinical manifestations (RR=1.28; 95% CI 1.22-1.34) and pathological change (RR=1.42; 95% CI 1.30-1.54) for AG patients. However, the H. pylori eradication effect of CHD was not supported by the existing clinical evidence, because of the significant study heterogeneity (I2>50%) and inconsistency between the primary results and sensitivity analysis. Conclusions: CHD, if prescribed as a complementary therapy to WM, may improve the clinical manifestations and pathological change for AG patients. But its monotherapy for H. pylori eradication is not supported by enough clinical evidence