Multi-omics insights into the microbiota-gut-brain axis and cognitive improvement post-bariatric surgery.

Background: Although numerous studies have shown that bariatric surgery results in sustained weight loss and modifications in gut microbiota composition and cognitive function, the exact underlying mechanisms are unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effects of bariatric surgery on cognitive function through the microbiota-gut-brain axis (MGBA).

Methods: Demographic data, serum samples, fecal samples, cognitive assessment scales, and resting-state functional connectivity magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) scans were obtained from 39 obese patients before and after (6 months) laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG).

Metabolism/Immunity Dual-Regulation Thermogels Potentiating Immunotherapy of Glioblastoma Through Lactate-Excretion Inhibition and PD-1/PD-L1 Blockade.

Intrinsic immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (ITM) and insufficient tumor infiltration of T cells severely impede the progress of glioblastoma (GBM) immunotherapy. In this study, it is identify that inhibiting the expression of glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) can facilitate the prevention of lactate excretion from tumor glycolysis, which significantly alleviates the lactate-driven ITM by reducing immunosuppressive tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and regulatory T cells (Tregs). Simultaneously, the findings show that the generated inflammatory cytokine IFN-γ during immune activation aggravates the immune escape by upregulating immune checkpoint programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) in tumor cells and TAMs.

Functional abnormalities of the cerebellum in vascular mild cognitive impairment.

Objectives: The alterations in cerebellar activity that occur in vascular mild cognitive impairment remain largely unexplored. This study aimed to investigate potential associations between abnormal cerebellar functional connectivity (FC) and changes in cognitive function by examining intracerebellar and cerebellar-cerebral FC.

Methods: MRI data were collected from seventy-two patients with vascular mild cognitive impairment (VMCI), comprising 38 patients with small vessel mild cognitive impairment (SVMCI) and 34 with poststroke mild cognitive impairment (PSMCI), and from 43 demographically matched healthy controls (HCs).

Value of Radiomic Analysis Combined With Diffusion Tensor Imaging in Early Diagnosis of HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorders.

Background: The combination of radiomics and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) may have potential clinical value in the early stage of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND).

Purpose: To investigate the value of DTI-based radiomics in the early stage of HAND in people living with HIV (PLWH).

Study Type: Retrospective.

Altered gray matter structural covariance networks in drug-naïve and treated early HIV-infected individuals.

Background: While regional brain structure and function alterations in HIV-infected individuals have been reported, knowledge about the topological organization in gray matter networks is limited. This research aims to investigate the effects of early HIV infection and combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) on gray matter structural covariance networks (SCNs) by employing graph theoretical analysis.

Methods: Sixty-five adult HIV+ individuals (25-50 years old), including 34 with cART (HIV+/cART+) and 31 medication-naïve (HIV+/cART-), and 35 demographically matched healthy controls (HCs) underwent high-resolution T-weighted images.

Enzyme-like copper-encapsulating magnetic nanoassemblies for switchable T1-weighted MRI and potentiating chemo-/photo-dynamic therapy.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has become a promising cancer treatment due to in situ generation of cytotoxic reactive oxygen (ROS); however, it remains limited by the hypoxia of tumor microenvironment (TME) and penetration depth of laser. Herein, we developed a kind of GSH-/HO-responsive copper-encapsulating magnetic nanoassemblies (MNSs) for switchable T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and enzyme-like activity potentiating PDT of cancer. MNSs were rationally constructed using the chelation effect of copper ions (Cu) with polyacrylic acid-coated ultrasmall iron oxide nanoparticles (UIONPs).

The resting-state topological organization damage of language-related brain regions in post-stroke cognitive impairment.

The topology of brain networks is the foundation of cognition. We hypothesized that stroke damaged topological organization resulting in cognitive impairment. The aim was to explore the damage pattern of the resting-state topology in post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) patients.

Suboptimal states and frontoparietal network-centered incomplete compensation revealed by dynamic functional network connectivity in patients with post-stroke cognitive impairment.

Background: Neural reorganization occurs after a stroke, and dynamic functional network connectivity (dFNC) pattern is associated with cognition. We hypothesized that dFNC alterations resulted from neural reorganization in post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) patients, and specific dFNC patterns characterized different pathological types of PSCI.

Methods: Resting-state fMRI data were collected from 16 PSCI patients with hemorrhagic stroke (hPSCI group), 21 PSCI patients with ischemic stroke (iPSCI group), and 21 healthy controls (HC).

Rich-Club Analysis of Structural Brain Network Alterations in HIV Positive Patients With Fully Suppressed Plasma Viral Loads.

Objective: Even with successful combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), patients with human immunodeficiency virus positive (HIV+) continue to present structural alterations and neuropsychological impairments. The purpose of this study is to investigate structural brain connectivity alterations and identify the hub regions in HIV+ patients with fully suppressed plasma viral loads.

Methods: In this study, we compared the brain structural connectivity in 48 patients with HIV+ treated with a combination of antiretroviral therapy and 48 healthy controls, using diffusion tensor imaging.

Decreased Functional Connectivities of Low-Degree Level Rich Club Organization and Caudate in Post-stroke Cognitive Impairment Based on Resting-State fMRI and Radiomics Features.

Background: Stroke is an important cause of cognitive impairment. Rich club organization, a highly interconnected network brain core region, is closely related to cognition. We hypothesized that the disturbance of rich club organization exists in patients with post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI).

Random Network and Non-rich-club Organization Tendency in Children With Non-syndromic Cleft Lip and Palate After Articulation Rehabilitation: A Diffusion Study.

Objective: The neuroimaging pattern in brain networks after articulation rehabilitation can be detected using graph theory and multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA). In this study, we hypothesized that the characteristics of the topology pattern of brain structural network in articulation-rehabilitated children with non-syndromic cleft lip and palate (NSCLP) were similar to that in healthy comparisons.

Methods: A total of 28 children with NSCLP and 28 controls with typical development were scanned for diffusion tensor imaging on a 3T MRI scanner.

Distinct Hypothalamic Paraventricular Nucleus Inputs to the Cingulate Cortex and Paraventricular Thalamic Nucleus Modulate Anxiety and Arousal.

Insomnia and anxiety are two common clinical diseases that threaten people's physical and mental health. Insomnia and anxiety may share some similar underlying neural circuit mechanisms in the brain. In this study, we combine techniques including chemo-fMRI, optogenetics, and chemogenetics to reveal that the glutamatergic neurons of the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus (PVN) regulate both anxiety and arousal through two different downstream neural circuits.

Altered Effective Connectivity Measured by Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Posterior Parietal-Frontal-Striatum Circuit in Patients With Disorder of Consciousness.

Objective: Disorder of consciousness (DoC) resulting from severe brain injury is characterized by cortical and subcortical dysconnectivity. However, research on seed-based effective connectivity (EC) of DoC might be questioned as to the heterogeneity of prior assumptions.

Methods: Functional MRI data of 16 DoC patients and 16 demographically matched healthy individuals were analyzed.

Characteristics of Brain White Matter Microstructure in HIV Male Patients With Primary Syphilis Co-Infection.

To investigate the effect of syphilis infection on the microstructure of white matter (WM) in HIV-infected male patients using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). Twenty-seven HIV-infected male patients with current syphilis or a history of syphilis (HIV +/syphilis +), twenty-nine HIV-infected male patients without syphilis co-infection (HIV +/syphilis-), and twenty-nine healthy controls (HC) were enrolled. All participants received DTI, and all patients received comprehensive neuropsychological assessment.

Development of a single capacitor-voltage-divider flux-loop for field-reversed theta-pinch plasmas.

As one of the most important diagnostics of field reversed plasma, the single-flux loop around the vacuum chamber is usually used to measure the magnetic flux to deduce the plasma size. In the theta-pinch process, the power supply will drive a large current through the coil in a short time to generate a high magnetic field, which will cause the magnetic flux in the vacuum chamber to rise sharply. Therefore, the induced voltage on the single-flux loop may be very strong and have high-frequency components.

Using Fractional Amplitude of Low-Frequency Fluctuations and Functional Connectivity in Patients With Post-stroke Cognitive Impairment for a Simulated Stimulation Program.

Stroke causes alterations in local spontaneous neuronal activity and related networks functional connectivity. We hypothesized that these changes occur in patients with post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI). Fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (fALFF) was calculated in 36 patients with cognitive impairment, including 16 patients with hemorrhagic stroke (hPSCI group), 20 patients with ischemic stroke (iPSCI group).

Development of functional connectivity within and among the resting-state networks in anesthetized rhesus monkeys.

Objective: The age-related changes in the resting-state networks (RSNs) exhibited temporally specific patterns in humans, and humans and rhesus monkeys have similar RSNs. We hypothesized that the RSNs in rhesus monkeys experienced similar developmental patterns as humans.

Methods: We acquired resting-state fMRI data from 62 rhesus monkeys, which were divided into childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood groups.

Increased modularity of the resting-state network in children with nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate after speech rehabilitation.

Introduction: Speech therapy is the primary management followed the physical management through surgery for children with nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate (NSCLP). However, the topological pattern of the resting-state network after rehabilitation remains poorly understood. We aimed to explore the functional topological pattern of children with NSCLP after speech rehabilitation compared with healthy controls.

Design of a dispersion interferometer on a field-reversed configuration device.

Dispersion interferometry (DI) is a promising method for density measurement. Compared with the traditional interferometer, the DI is immune to mechanical vibration and can avoid the fringe jump error. In addition, a simple optical configuration is also one of the advantages of the DI.

Topological properties of the resting-state functional network in nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate children after speech rehabilitation.

Speech therapy has been widely used as an essential therapy for compensatory articulation errors in nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate patients. We sought to identify potential biomarkers of nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate children after speech rehabilitation based on resting-state fMRI and graph theory techniques. We scanned 28 nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate and 28 typically developing children for resting-state fMRI on a 3T MRI scanner.

Compensation of the pick-up fluxes on the plasma position control system when resonant magnetic perturbations are applied in J-TEXT.

In the J-TEXT tokamak the displacement coils, which serve as sensors for feedback control of plasma position, are significantly affected by the resonant magnetic perturbation (RMP) coils. To eliminate the deviation of plasma position caused by the RMP, the responses of the displacement coils to the RMP are studied with a view to compensate for the pick-up fluxes. Both the linear and eddy responses on the displacement coils are taken into account and adjusted accordingly.

Altered brain functional network in children with type 1 Gaucher disease: a longitudinal graph theory-based study.

Purpose: Previous studies have investigated the brain structural abnormalities in children with type I Gaucher disease (GD). The purpose of our study is to investigate the topological efficiency of the brain functional network in children with type 1 GD.

Methods: Twenty-two children diagnosed with type 1 GD and 22 sex- and age-matched healthy controls (HCs) underwent resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) examination.