The preliminary evidence on the association of the gut microbiota with stroke risk stratification in South Chinese population

AimsThis study aimed to investigate the association between the gut microbiota and the risk of stroke.MethodsFaecal samples from 60 participants in South China, including 45 individuals with risk factors for stroke and 15 healthy controls, were collected and subjected to 16S rRNA sequencing. A bioinformatics analysis was performed to characterise the gut microbial diversity and taxonomic compositions at different risk levels (low, moderate, and high) of stroke. Functional prediction and correlation analyses between the microbiota and laboratory markers were performed to explore the potential mechanisms.ResultsA significant difference in beta diversity was observed between the participants from the stroke risk and healthy control groups. Linear discriminant effect size analysis revealed a large number of vascular beneficial bacteria enriched in the participants from the healthy control and low-risk groups, but a few vascular harmful bacteria were more abundant in the participants from the high-risk group than in those from the other groups. In addition, Anaerostipes, Clostridium_XlVb, and Flavonifractor, all of which belonged to the Firmicutes phylum, were enriched in the participants from the low-risk group, and their relative abundances gradually decreased as the stroke risk increased. Spearman’s analysis revealed that these outstanding microbiota correlated with the levels of triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, white blood cells, neutrophils, and carotid intima-media thickness.ConclusionThe preliminary evidence suggests that gut microbiota is associated with stroke risk. It potentially ameliorates atherosclerosis by targeting lipid metabolism and inflammation. This provides novel insights into the early screening of stroke risk and primary prevention

Folic acid therapy reduces the first stroke risk associated with hypercholesterolemia among hypertensive patients

Background and Purpose - We sought to determine whether folic acid supplementation can independently reduce the risk of first stroke associated with elevated total cholesterol levels in a subanalysis using data from the CSPPT (China Stroke Primary Prevention Trial), a double-blind, randomized controlled trial. Methods - A total of 20 702 hypertensive adults without a history of major cardiovascular disease were randomly assigned to a double-blind daily treatment of an enalapril 10-mg and a folic acid 0.8-mg tablet or an enalapril 10-mg tablet alone. The primary outcome was first stroke. Results - The median treatment duration was 4.5 years. For participants not receiving folic acid treatment (enalapril-only group), high total cholesterol (≥ 200 mg/dL) was an independent predictor of first stroke when compared with low total cholesterol (\u3c200 mg/dL; 4.0% versus 2.6%; hazard ratio, 1.52; 95% confidence interval, 1.18-1.97; P=0.001). Folic acid supplementation significantly reduced the risk of first s roke among participants with high total cholesterol (4.0% in the enalapril-only group versus 2.7% in the enalapril-folic acid group; hazard ratio, 0.69; 95% confidence interval, 0.56-0.84 P\u3c0.001; number needed to treat, 78; 95% confidence interval, 52-158), independent of baseline folate levels and other important covariates. By contrast, among participants with low total cholesterol, the risk of stroke was 2.6% in the enalapril-only group versus 2.5% in the enalapril-folic acid group (hazard ratio, 1.00; 95% confidence interval, 0.75-1.30; P=0.982). The effect was greater among participants with elevated total cholesterol (P for interaction=0.024). Conclusions - Elevated total cholesterol levels may modify the benefits of folic acid therapy on first stroke. Folic acid supplementation reduced the risk of first stroke associated with elevated total cholesterol by 31% among hypertensive adults without a history of major cardiovascular diseases

Radar Micro-Doppler Patterns for Drone's Characterisation

Micro-Doppler patterns of multi-propeller drones measured by radar systems are widely used in the classification of different drones, since the micro-Doppler patterns illustrate the velocity and motion properties of the drones. However, on this topic, there are a few issues the current researches have not tackled yet, and these will be discussed in this presentation. First of them is the lack of mathematical description of the micro-Doppler patterns. and most research works are based on real measured data so far. In this thesis, an EM backscattering model in HH plane of drone propeller is developed, simplifying the propeller’s geometry structure as a few cylinder thin wires. Radar signal model and micro-Doppler model are subsequently developed for the thin-wire propeller model when it is rotating. Second, most current researches focus on the micro-Doppler patterns achieved in short CPI cases that are valid for radar systems with PRI much shorter than the rotation period of the drone’s propellers. In this thesis, the drone micro-Doppler patterns in long CPI circumstances are investigated. Features are proposed to characterise the amplitude and frequency distribution of the simulated micro-Doppler spectrum. Applying these features to SVM gives good classification accuracy for the simulated micro-Doppler data. Third, most researches at present are carried out in short range for static or stable hovering drones, while from a practical point of view, it is also of great interest to investigate the drone micro-Doppler patterns in long range and dynamic scenarios. In this thesis, the micro-Doppler patterns of different drones at a distance of 9 kilometres are achieved by S-band radar in long CPI circumstance. Applying the previously proposed features to the real measured micro-Doppler spectra to SVM gives good classification accuracy for drones in hovering and manoeuvring flight modes.Electrical Engineering | Signals and System

Advances in Anti-Diabetic Cognitive Dysfunction Effect of Erigeron Breviscapus (Vaniot) Hand-Mazz

Diabetic cognitive dysfunction (DCD) is the decline in memory, learning, and executive function caused by diabetes. Although its pathogenesis is unclear, molecular biologists have proposed various hypotheses, including insulin resistance, amyloid β hypothesis, tau protein hyperphosphorylation hypothesis, oxidative stress and neuroinflammation. DCD patients have no particular treatment options and current pharmacological regimens are suboptimal. In recent years, Chinese medicine research has shown that herbs with multi-component, multi-pathway and multi-target synergistic activities can prevent and treat DCD. Yunnan is home to the medicinal herb Erigeron breviscapus (Vant.) Hand-Mazz. (EBHM). Studies have shown that EBHM and its active components have a wide range of pharmacological effects and applications in cognitive disorders. EBHM’s anti-DCD properties have been seldom reviewed. Through a literature study, we were able to evaluate the likely pathophysiology of DCD, prescribe anti-DCD medication and better grasp EBHM’s therapeutic potential. EBHM’s pharmacological mechanism and active components for DCD treatment were also summarized

Simulation of Radar Micro-Doppler Patterns for Multi-Propeller Drones

This paper presents a thin-wire electromagnetic (EM) model of multi-propeller drone that generates drone micro-Doppler pattern efficiently as a function of radar parameters and propeller properties. Experimental results of propeller micro-Doppler pattern measured in anechoic chamber was investigated and used to validate the results produced by thin-wire model of single propeller in S-band and X-band. Then the thin-wire model was expanded to multi-propeller drones and reproduced linear micro-Doppler patterns of multi-propeller drone measured by radar system in long Coherent Processing Interval (CPI) circumstance. The model-based replica was shown to be useful in radar micro-Doppler analysis of multi-propeller drones, especially to study the influence of propellers synchronisation and in long CPI circumstances.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Microwave Sensing, Signals & System

Improving the Simulations of Radar Signatures of Small Drone

Small drones have attracted significant research interest from law enforcement and defence agencies due to the challenge in detecting, tracking, and classifying them with radar, because of their small size and high manoeuvrability. As collecting experimental data for all possible drone models and scenarios is unfeasible, modelling work to simulate accurately the signatures of these platforms is an important task. This paper presents some preliminary results of research effort to enhance modelling capabilities of the radar signatures of individual small drones, and multiple drones flying together in the scene of interest

Comparative effectiveness research on patients with acute ischemic stroke using Markov decision processes

Abstract Background Several methodological issues with non-randomized comparative clinical studies have been raised, one of which is whether the methods used can adequately identify uncertainties that evolve dynamically with time in real-world systems. The objective of this study is to compare the effectiveness of different combinations of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) treatments and combinations of TCM and Western medicine interventions in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) by using Markov decision process (MDP) theory. MDP theory appears to be a promising new method for use in comparative effectiveness research. Methods The electronic health records (EHR) of patients with AIS hospitalized at the 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine between May 2005 and July 2008 were collected. Each record was portioned into two "state-action-reward" stages divided by three time points: the first, third, and last day of hospital stay. We used the well-developed optimality technique in MDP theory with the finite horizon criterion to make the dynamic comparison of different treatment combinations. Results A total of 1504 records with a primary diagnosis of AIS were identified. Only states with more than 10 (including 10) patients' information were included, which gave 960 records to be enrolled in the MDP model. Optimal combinations were obtained for 30 types of patient condition. Conclusion MDP theory makes it possible to dynamically compare the effectiveness of different combinations of treatments. However, the optimal interventions obtained by the MDP theory here require further validation in clinical practice. Further exploratory studies with MDP theory in other areas in which complex interventions are common would be worthwhile.</p