MRMQuant: Automated MRM Data Quantitation for Large-Scale Targeted Metabolomics Analysis.

Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) is a powerful and popular technique used for metabolite quantification in targeted metabolomics. Accurate and consistent quantitation of metabolites from the MRM data is essential for subsequent analyses. Here, we developed an automated tool, MRMQuant, for targeted metabolomic quantitation using high-throughput liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry MRM data to provide users with an easy-to-use tool for accurate MRM data quantitation with minimal human intervention.

NMR-Based Analysis of Plasma Lipoprotein Subclass and Lipid Composition Demonstrate the Different Dietary Effects in ApoE-Deficient Mice.

Plasma lipid levels are commonly measured using traditional methods such as triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and cholesterol (CH). However, the use of newer technologies, such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) with post-analysis platforms, has made it easier to assess lipoprotein profiles in research. In this study involving ApoE-deficient mice that were fed high-fat diets, significant changes were observed in TG, CH, free cholesterol (FC), and phospholipid (PL) levels within the LDL fraction.

Malonyl-CoA Accumulation as a Compensatory Cytoprotective Mechanism in Cardiac Cells in Response to 7-Ketocholesterol-Induced Growth Retardation.

The major oxidized product of cholesterol, 7-Ketocholesterol (7KCh), causes cellular oxidative damage. In the present study, we investigated the physiological responses of cardiomyocytes to 7KCh. A 7KCh treatment inhibited the growth of cardiac cells and their mitochondrial oxygen consumption.

7-Ketocholesterol Induces Lipid Metabolic Reprogramming and Enhances Cholesterol Ester Accumulation in Cardiac Cells.

7-Ketocholesterol (7KCh) is a major oxidized cholesterol product abundant in lipoprotein deposits and atherosclerotic plaques. Our previous study has shown that 7KCh accumulates in erythrocytes of heart failure patients, and further investigation centered on how 7KCh may affect metabolism in cardiomyocytes. We applied metabolomics to study the metabolic changes in cardiac cell line HL-1 after treatment with 7KCh.

Association between gastrointestinal symptoms and depression among older adults in Taiwan: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Older adults with depression more frequently experience somatic and gastrointestinal (GI) problems compared with people without depression and younger adults with depression. However, whether GI symptoms are predictive of elevated rates of depression among older adults is unclear.

Methods: We enrolled 106 older adults (>60 years old); 69 had late-life depression (LLD), and 37 were controls.

Risk Score for Predicting Mortality in People With Dementia: A Nationwide, Population-Based Cohort Study in Taiwan With 11 Years of Follow-Up.

Objective: Many researchers and physicians attempt to determine the prognosis and short- and long-term mortality risks of dementia for formulating suitable care plans for patients and their families. However, the published prediction models have been insufficient for this purpose and have worked only in certain specific populations. For medical autonomy and end-of-life decisions, an informative tool to predict 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, and 5-year mortality rates for dementia patients merits further investigation.

A Novel Murine Model Expressing a Chimeric mSCARB2/hSCARB2 Receptor Is Highly Susceptible to Oral Infection with Clinical Isolates of Enterovirus 71.

Enterovirus 71 (EV71) infection is generally associated with hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) and may cause severe neurological disorders and even death. An effective murine oral infection model for studying the pathogenesis of various clinical EV71 isolates is lacking. We developed a transgenic (Tg) mouse that expresses an EV71 receptor, that is, human scavenger receptor class B member 2 (hSCARB2), in a pattern highly similar to that of endogenous murine SCARB2 (mSCARB2) protein.

Association of Polypharmacy With Mild Cognitive Impairment and Cognitive Ability: A Nationwide Survey in Taiwan.

Background: Polypharmacy, defined as the concomitant use of 5 or more medications, has a documented negative association with cognitive impairment such as delirium and is associated, potentially, with a higher risk of dementia. However, whether polypharmacy contributes to increased risk of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or decreased cognitive capacity requires further investigation. This nationwide population survey investigated the association among polypharmacy, MCI, and dementia.

Anti-enterovirus 71 activities of Melissa officinalis extract and its biologically active constituent rosmarinic acid.

Enterovirus 71 (EV71) infection is endemic in the Asia-Pacific region. No specific antiviral drug has been available to treat EV71 infection. Melissa officinalis (MO) is a medicinal plant with long history of usage in the European and Middle East.

The ADAMTS9 gene is associated with cognitive aging in the elderly in a Taiwanese population.

Evidence indicates that the pathophysiologic mechanisms associated with insulin resistance may contribute to cognitive aging and Alzheimer's diseases. In this study, we hypothesize that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within insulin resistance-associated genes, such as the ADAM metallopeptidase with thrombospondin type 1 motif 9 (ADAMTS9), glucokinase regulator (GCKR), and peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPARG) genes, may be linked with cognitive aging independently and/or through complex interactions in an older Taiwanese population. A total of 547 Taiwanese subjects aged over 60 years from the Taiwan Biobank were analyzed.

The rs1277306 Variant of the REST Gene Confers Susceptibility to Cognitive Aging in an Elderly Taiwanese Population.

Background/aims: There is growing evidence that the RE1-silencing transcription factor (REST) gene may contribute to cognitive aging and Alzheimer diseases. In this replication study, we reassessed whether single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the REST gene are linked with cognitive aging independently and/or through complex interactions in an older Taiwanese population.

Methods: A total of 634 Taiwanese subjects aged over 60 years from the Taiwan Biobank were analyzed.

Daytime sleepiness: a risk factor for poor social engagement among the elderly.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between social engagement and daytime sleepiness among aged residents of a veterans' housing facility in Taiwan.

Methods: A total of 597 men were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Each subject was assessed with the Resident Assessment Instrument-Minimum Data Set, Geriatric Depression Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Mini-Mental State Examination.

Cognitive and neuropsychiatric correlates of EEG dynamic complexity in patients with Alzheimer's disease.

This study assessed the utility of multiscale entropy (MSE), a complexity analysis of biological signals, to identify changes in dynamics of surface electroencephalogram (EEG) in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) that was correlated to cognitive and behavioral dysfunction. A total of 108 AD patients were recruited and their digital EEG recordings were analyzed using MSE methods. We investigate the appropriate parameters and time scale factors for MSE calculation from EEG signals.

Effects of age, sex, index admission, and predominant polarity on the seasonality of acute admissions for bipolar disorder: a population-based study.

Bipolar disorder seasonality has been documented previously, though information on the effect of demographic and clinical variables on seasonal patterns is scant. This study examined effects of age, sex, index admission, and predominant polarity on bipolar disorder seasonality in a nationwide population. An inpatient cohort admitted to hospital exclusively for mental illness was derived from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database for 2002-2007.

Reduced physiologic complexity is associated with poor sleep in patients with major depression and primary insomnia.

Background: Depression is known to be associated with altered cardiovascular variability and increased cardiovascular comorbidity, yet it is unknown whether altered cardiac autonomic function in depression is associated with insomnia, a common symptom comorbid with depression. This study aimed to investigate the long-term diurnal profile of autonomic function as measured by heart rate variability (HRV) in both major depression and primary insomnia patients.

Method: A total of 52 non-medicated patients with major depression, 47 non-medicated patients with primary insomnia, and 88 matched controls without insomnia were recruited.

Sleep state instabilities in major depressive disorder: Detection and quantification with electrocardiogram-based cardiopulmonary coupling analysis.

Sleep disruption is an important aspect of major depressive disorder but lacks an objective and inexpensive means of assessment. We evaluated the utility of electrocardiogram (ECG)-based cardiopulmonary coupling analysis to quantify physiologic sleep stability in patients with major depression. Relative to controls, unmedicated depressed patients had a reduction in high-frequency coupling, an index of stable sleep, an increase in low-frequency coupling, an index of unstable sleep, and an increase in very-low-frequency coupling, an index of wakefulness/REM sleep.

BDNF Val66Met polymorphism alters sympathovagal balance in healthy subjects.

A common polymorphism of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene (Val66Met) has been implicated in anxiety, which is associated with lower vagal activity. We hypothesize that the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism may have a modulatory effect on the cardiac sympathovagal balance. A total of 211 healthy Chinese-Han adults (58 male, 153 female, aged 33.

Depression is the strongest independent risk factor for poor social engagement among Chinese elderly veteran assisted-living residents.

Background: Social engagement prolongs the lifespan and preserves cognition in the elderly. However, most studies concerning social engagement have been conducted in Western countries; few have been performed in the Chinese population. This study attempted to identify the risk factors for poor social engagement among elderly veterans in Taiwan.

Sex distribution and psychiatric features of child and adolescent conversion disorder across 2 decades.

Background: Earlier research suggested female predominance in adult conversion disorder, and the strong association between conversion disorder and experiences of being abused is well known. However, the data for child and adolescent populations are limited. In Taiwan, the dramatic increase in child abuse may have some impact on the features of child and adolescent conversion disorder.

Medically unexplained symptoms and somatoform disorders: diagnostic challenges to psychiatrists.

Background: Clinical limitations of the criteria of somatoform disorders (SDs) have been criticized. However, little objective evidence supports this notion. We aimed to examine the prevalence of SDs in a population with medically unexplained symptoms (MUS), which was expected to have higher probabilities meriting such diagnoses, and to evaluate factors that may influence the clinical judgment of psychiatrists.