Effects of the SNAP-25 Mnll variant on hippocampal functional connectivity in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder

ObjectivesAttention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most widespread and highly heritable neurodevelopmental disorders affecting children worldwide. Although synaptosomal-associated protein 25 (SNAP-25) is a possible gene hypothesized to be associated with working memory deficits in ADHD, little is known about its specific impact on the hippocampus. The goal of the current study was to determine how variations in ADHD’s SNAP-25 Mnll polymorphism (rs3746544) affect hippocampal functional connectivity (FC).MethodsA total of 88 boys between the ages of 7 and 10 years were recruited for the study, including 60 patients with ADHD and 28 healthy controls (HCs). Data from resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) and clinical information were acquired and assessed. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in the SNAP-25 gene were genotyped, according to which the study’s findings separated ADHD patients into two groups: TT homozygotes (TT = 35) and G-allele carriers (TG = 25).ResultsBased on the rs-fMRI data, the FC of the right hippocampus and left frontal gyrus was evaluated using group-based comparisons. The corresponding sensitivities and specificities were assessed. Following comparisons between the patient groups, different hippocampal FCs were identified. When compared to TT patients, children with TG had a lower FC between the right precuneus and the right hippocampus, and a higher FC between the right hippocampus and the left middle frontal gyrus.ConclusionThe fundamental neurological pathways connecting the SNAP-25 Mnll polymorphism with ADHD via the FC of the hippocampus were newly revealed in this study. As a result, the hippocampal FC may further serve as an imaging biomarker for ADHD

Ectomycorrhizal trees rely on nitrogen resorption less than arbuscular mycorrhizal trees globally

<p>Nitrogen (N) resorption is an important pathway of N conservation, contributing to a proportion of plant N requirement. However, whether the ratio of N resorption to N requirement would be affected by environmental factors, mycorrhizal types or atmospheric CO2 concentration remains unclear. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis on the impacts of environmental factors and mycorrhizal types on this ratio. We found this ratio in ectomycorrhizal (EM) trees decreased with mean annual precipitation (MAP), mean annual temperature (MAT), soil total N content (TN) and atmospheric CO2 concentration and was significantly lower than that in arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) trees. An <i>in situ</i> 15N tracing experiment further confirmed this stronger reliance on N resorption for AM trees than EM trees. Our study suggests that AM and EM trees potentially have different strategies for alleviation of progressive N limitation, highlighting the necessity of incorporating plant mycorrhizal types into Earth System Models. </p&gt

Ectomycorrhizal trees rely on nitrogen resorption less than arbuscular mycorrhizal trees globally

<p>Nitrogen (N) resorption is an important pathway of N conservation, contributing to a proportion of plant N requirement. However, whether the ratio of N resorption to N requirement would be affected by environmental factors, mycorrhizal types or atmospheric CO2 concentration remains unclear. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis on the impacts of environmental factors and mycorrhizal types on this ratio. We found this ratio in ectomycorrhizal (EM) trees decreased with mean annual precipitation (MAP), mean annual temperature (MAT), soil total N content (TN) and atmospheric CO2 concentration and was significantly lower than that in arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) trees. An <i>in situ</i> 15N tracing experiment further confirmed this stronger reliance on N resorption for AM trees than EM trees. Our study suggests that AM and EM trees potentially have different strategies for alleviation of progressive N limitation, highlighting the necessity of incorporating plant mycorrhizal types into Earth System Models. </p&gt

Ectomycorrhizal trees rely on nitrogen resorption less than arbuscular mycorrhizal trees globally

<p>Nitrogen (N) resorption is an important pathway of N conservation, contributing to a proportion of plant N requirement. However, whether the ratio of N resorption to N requirement would be affected by environmental factors, mycorrhizal types or atmospheric CO2 concentration remains unclear. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis on the impacts of environmental factors and mycorrhizal types on this ratio. We found this ratio in ectomycorrhizal (EM) trees decreased with mean annual precipitation (MAP), mean annual temperature (MAT), soil total N content (TN) and atmospheric CO2 concentration and was significantly lower than that in arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) trees. An <i>in situ</i> 15N tracing experiment further confirmed this stronger reliance on N resorption for AM trees than EM trees. Our study suggests that AM and EM trees potentially have different strategies for alleviation of progressive N limitation, highlighting the necessity of incorporating plant mycorrhizal types into Earth System Models. </p&gt

A novel MRI feature, the cut green pepper sign, can help differentiate a suprasellar pilocytic astrocytoma from an adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma

Abstract Objective There are no specific magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features that distinguish pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) from adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma (ACP). In this study we compared the frequency of a novel enhancement characteristic on MRI (called the cut green pepper sign) in PA and ACP. Methods Consecutive patients with PA (n = 24) and ACP (n = 36) in the suprasellar region were included in the analysis. The cut green pepper sign was evaluated on post-contrast T1WI images independently by 2 neuroradiologists who were unaware of the pathologic diagnosis. The frequency of cut green pepper sign in PA and ACP was compared with Fisher’s exact test. Results The cut green pepper sign was identified in 50% (12/24) of patients with PA, and 5.6% (2/36) with ACP. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of the cut green pepper sign for diagnosing PA were 50%, 94.4%, 85.7% and 73.9%, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference in the age of patients with PA with and without the cut green pepper sign (12.3 ± 9.2 years vs. 5.5 ± 4.4 years, p = 0.035). Conclusion The novel cut green pepper sign can help distinguish suprasellar PA from ACP on MRI

DNA Damage Inducer Mitoxantrone Amplifies Synergistic Mild‐Photothermal Chemotherapy for TNBC via Decreasing Heat Shock Protein 70 Expression

Abstract Patients with triple‐negative breast cancer (TNBC) have the worst clinical outcomes when compared to other subtypes of breast cancer. Nanotechnology‐assisted photothermal therapy (PTT) opens new opportunities for precise cancer treatment. However, thermoresistance caused by PTT, as well as uncertainty in the physiological metabolism of existing phototherapeutic nanoformulations, severely limit their clinical applications. Herein, based on the clinically chemotherapeutic drug mitoxantrone (MTO), a multifunctional nanoplatform (MTO‐micelles) is developed to realize mutually synergistic mild‐photothermal chemotherapy. MTO with excellent near‐infrared absorption (≈669 nm) can function not only as a chemotherapeutic agent but also as a photothermal transduction agent with elevated photothermal conversion efficacy (ƞ = 54.62%). MTO‐micelles can accumulate at the tumor site through the enhanced permeability and retention effect. Following local near‐infrared irradiation, mild hyperthermia (<50 °C) assists MTO in binding tumor cell DNA, resulting in chemotherapeutic sensitization. In addition, downregulation of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) expression due to enhanced DNA damage can in turn weaken tumor thermoresistance, boosting the efficacy of mild PTT. Both in vitro and in vivo studies indicate that MTO‐micelles possess excellent synergetic tumor inhibition effects. Therefore, the mild‐photothermal chemotherapy strategy based on MTO‐micelles has a promising prospect in the clinical transformation of TNBC treatment