Analyzing characteristics of collateral flow to parasylvian cortical arteries by three-dimensional digital subtraction angiography–magnetic resonance angiography fusion imaging in adult moyamoya disease

ObjectiveThe hemodynamic sources of recipient parasylvian cortical arteries (PSCAs) were significantly related to postoperative cerebral hyperperfusion (CHP) after bypass surgery in patients with moyamoya disease (MMD). The present study aimed to introduce a new method to investigate the characteristics of PSCAs hemodynamic sources and their relationships with clinical presentations in adult MMD and to provide preoperative evaluation for recipient vessel selection in MMD bypass surgery.MethodsThe hemodynamic sources of the PSCAs in 171 symptomatic MMD hemispheres were analyzed by three-dimensional digital subtraction angiography (3D-DSA) combined with magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) fusion imaging. The spatial and temporal characteristics of the hemodynamic sources of the PSCAs and their associations with the patient's demographics, Suzuki stage, and initial onset type were investigated.ResultsSix major types of hemodynamic sources in the PSCAs were observed. There was a significant difference between the hemodynamic sources of the PSCAs above and below the SF (P < 0.001). With advancing Suzuki stages, collateral flow to the PSCAs above the SF from the internal carotid arteries (ICAs) significantly decreased, while the non-ICAs increased (P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed that hemodynamic sources of the PSCAs above the SF were significantly associated with patients' initial onset type (P = 0.026).ConclusionIn MMD hemispheres, the hemodynamic sources of the PSCAs above the SF are more varied than those below the SF and present a typical conversion trend from ICAs to non-ICAs with advancing Suzuki stages. Analyzing the hemodynamic sources of the PSCAs can help in understanding the conversion pattern of compensatory vascular systems, predicting episodes in MMD, and preoperatively evaluating suitable recipient vessel selection for bypass surgery to avoid postoperative CHP

Interferon-β-induced miR-155 inhibits osteoclast differentiation by targeting SOCS1 and MITF

AbstractIFN-β is induced via a c-fos dependent mechanism that is present downstream of the receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL)-RANK signal transduction cascade during osteoclast differentiation. Increased production of IFN-β in turn inhibits osteoclastogenesis. However, the mechanism by which IFN-β exerts its suppressive function remains unclear. In the present study, we found that miR-155, an IFN-β-induced miRNA, mediated the suppressive effect of IFN-β on osteoclast differentiation by targeting SOCS1 and MITF, two essential regulators of osteoclastogenesis. These findings have not only demonstrated that miR-155 inhibits osteoclast differentiation, but also provided a new therapeutic target for treatment of osteoclast-mediated diseases

Optimal design and performance analysis of a hybrid system combing a floating wind platform and wave energy converters

Combined floating offshore wind platform and Wave Energy Converters (WECs) systems have the potential to provide a cost-effective solution to offshore power supply and platform protection. The objective of this paper is to optimize the size and layout of WECs within the hybrid system under a given sea state with a numerical study. The numerical model was developed based on potential flow theory with viscous correction in frequency domain to investigate the hydrodynamic performance of a hybrid system consisting of a floating platform and multiple heaving WECs. A non-dimensional method was presented to determine a series of variables, including radius, draft, and layout of the cylindrical WEC at a typical wave frequency as the initial design. WECs with larger diameter to draft ratio were found to experience relatively smaller viscous effects, and achieve more wave power, larger effective frequency range and similar wave power per unit weight compared with those with the smaller diameter to draft ratio in the same sea state. The addition of WECs reduced the maximum horizontal force and pitch moment on the platform, whereas the maximum vertical force increased due to the increasing power take-off force, especially at low frequencies. The results presented in this paper provide guidance for the optimized design of WECs and indicate the potential for synergies between wave and wind energy utilization on floating platforms

Prostaglandin signalling regulates ciliogenesis by modulating intraflagellar transport

Cilia are microtubule-based organelles that mediate signal transduction in a variety of tissues. Despite their importance, the signalling cascades that regulate cilium formation remain incompletely understood. Here we report that prostaglandin signalling affects ciliogenesis by regulating anterograde intraflagellar transport (IFT). Zebrafish leakytail (lkt) mutants show ciliogenesis defects, and the lkt locus encodes an ATP-binding cassette transporter (ABCC4). We show that Lkt/ABCC4 localizes to the cell membrane and exports prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), a function that is abrogated by the Lkt/ABCC4T804M mutant. PGE2 synthesis enzyme cyclooxygenase-1 and its receptor, EP4, which localizes to the cilium and activates the cyclic-AMP-mediated signalling cascade, are required for cilium formation and elongation. Importantly, PGE2 signalling increases anterograde but not retrograde velocity of IFT and promotes ciliogenesis in mammalian cells. These findings lead us to propose that Lkt/ABCC4-mediated PGE2 signalling acts through a ciliary G-protein-coupled receptor, EP4, to upregulate cAMP synthesis and increase anterograde IFT, thereby promoting ciliogenesis

Jump-Diffusion Long-Run Risks Models, Variance Risk Premium and Volatility Dynamics

Bank of Canada working papers are theoretical or empirical works-in-progress on subjects in economics and finance. The views expressed in this paper are those of the author. No responsibility for them should 2 be attributed to the Bank of Canada

A Cartesian grid based multiphase flow model for water impact of an arbitrary complex body

A Cartesian grid based multiphase flow model is developed to simulate water impact problems. This model is capable of simulating complex moving bodies interacting with a highly non-linear free surface such as jet flow or air cushion. A radial basis function based ghost cell method (RBFGCM) is developed to treat the arbitrary moving body on a fixed Cartesian grid. The complex moving boundary is tracked with the RBF and ghost cells are identified based on the signed function property of the RBF. To capture large deformation of the free surface, a gradient-augmented level set (GALS) method is used. Sub-grid resolution is obtained by simultaneously evolving both the level set (LS) function and its gradient information. Also, a simple distance function assignment method is developed to treat the contact boundary between the free surface and the solid surface. The accuracies of the ghost cell method (GCM) and the GALS method are validated by inline oscillation of a cylinder and horizontal sloshing cases, respectively. Then, the water impact of an arbitrary body is simulated. The cases include the water entry of a free falling multihull and the water entry of a bow-flare ship section with various roll angles. The accuracy of the proposed multiphase flow model and its capability are examined by comparing the present results to experimental and numerical results. Also, the results show that the present method can more accurately predict the slamming load in the presence of flow separation and air cushion than the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) based single-phase flow model and the boundary element method (BEM). Furthermore, the influence of roll angles on the slamming load and the free surface are studied.</p

A radial basis function based ghost cell method with improved mass conservation for complex moving boundary flows

A sharp interface immersed boundary method is presented for simulating flows around moving boundaries with arbitrary complex geometries. A time semi-implicit finite difference method is used to solve the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations on a fixed, staggered Cartesian grid. The boundary conditions at the immersed interface are enforced by a ghost cell method. Tracking complex moving boundaries and suppressing pressure oscillations are two major challenges in the sharp interface method. In this work, a polynomial radial basis function (PRBF) is introduced to the ghost cell method to implicitly represent and reconstruct the arbitrary immersed boundaries. In addition, a simple and robust signed identification strategy is used to determine the phase state of the grid cells. To suppress violent pressure oscillations on the moving boundaries, a fractional area representation (FAR) method, together with a mass force term, is introduced to the pressure Poisson equation. This FAR method not only retains the desirable property of consistent discretization in the ghost cell method but also takes advantage of the mass conservation property of the cut cell method. The proposed method is validated using five test cases, including the flow around a hydrofoil, in-line oscillation of a cylinder in a static fluid, uniform flows around a transversely oscillating cylinder, twin oscillating cylinders, and a pitching hydrofoil. The present results are in good agreement with the reference results, which validates the accuracy and capability of the proposed method.</p

Designing a flow-controlled STA-MCA anastomosis based on the Hagen–Poiseuille law for preventing postoperative hyperperfusion in adult moyamoya disease

Background: Technical improvements for preventing postoperative symptomatic cerebral hyperperfusion (CHP) during superficial temporal artery-middle cerebral artery (STA-MCA) anastomosis for moyamoya disease (MMD) were seldom reported. Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the significance of application of a novel flow-controlled concept which voluntarily reduces the hemodynamic difference between the donor and recipient arteries based on the Hagen–Poiseuille law when performing direct anastomoses of recipient parasylvian cortical arteries (PSCAs) with anterograde hemodynamic sources from the MCA (M-PSCAs) in adult MMD. Design: This was a retrospective observational study. Methods: Direct anastomoses of recipient M-PSCAs were performed on 89 symptomatic hemispheres in 82 adult MMD patients in our hospital from January 2020 to June 2021. They were divided into the flow-controlled group (patients who received direct anastomosis under designed flow-controlled principles) and non-flow-controlled group (patients who received conventional direct anastomosis to obtain maximum flow). The patients’ basic characteristics and incidence of postoperative CHP were compared between the two groups. Risk factors for occurrence of postoperative CHP were analyzed. Results: Overall, 36 hemispheres were included in the non-flow-controlled group and 53 in flow-controlled group. The incidences of postoperative focal (22.6%) and symptomatic CHP (5.7%) in the flow-controlled group were significantly lower than those (focal, 52.8%; symptomatic, 25.0%) in the non-flow-controlled group ( p  = 0.003 and 0.009, respectively). Multivariate analysis revealed that the flow-controlled concept was significantly associated with the development of focal ( p  = 0.005) and symptomatic ( p  = 0.012) CHP. Conclusion: The flow-controlled STA-MCA anastomosis can significantly decrease the incidence of postoperative CHP during direct anastomoses of recipient M-PSCAs in adult MMD

Gradient-augmented level set two-phase flow method with pretreated reinitialization for three-dimensional violent sloshing

A three-dimensional (3D) gradient-augmented level set (GALS) two-phase flow model with a pretreated reinitialization procedure is developed to simulate violent sloshing in a cuboid tank. Based on a two-dimensional (2D) GALS method, 3D Hermite, and 3D Lagrange polynomial schemes are derived to interpolate the level set function and the velocity field at arbitrary positions over a cell, respectively. A reinitialization procedure is performed on a 3D narrow band to treat the strongly distorted interface and improve computational efficiency. In addition, an identification-correction technique is proposed and incorporated into the reinitialization procedure to treat the tiny droplet which can distort the free surface shape, even lead to computation failure. To validate the accuracy of the present GALS method and the effectiveness of the proposed identification correction technique, a 3D velocity advection case is first simulated. The present method is validated to have better mass conservation property than the classical level set and original GALS methods. Also, distorted and thin interfaces are well captured on all grid resolutions by the present GALS method. Then, sloshing under coupled surge and sway excitation, sloshing under rotational excitation are simulated. Good agreements are obtained when the present wave and pressure results are compared with the experimental and numerical results. In addition, the highly nonlinear free surface is observed, and the relationship between the excitation frequency and the impulsive pressure is investigated