Application of trans-thoracic echocardiography and coronary CT angiography to diagnose mitral valve prolapse.

Objective: At present, multi-detector cardiac CT has been widely applied in the detection of heart valve morphology and function. This study aims to compare the coronary CT angiography and trans-thoracic echocardiography for patients with mitral valve prolapse.

Methods: CT angiography and trans-thoracic echocardiography were adopted to detect the movement range and thickness of valvula bicuspidalis.

Multimodal quantitative magnetic resonance imaging for lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration.

The present study investigated the application of the T and T relaxation mapping magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in the evaluation of intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD). A total of 93 asymptomatic subjects were imaged with T and T mapping, as well as DWI. Pfirrmann grading was performed and correlation analysis was conducted for T, T and DWI results with the grading results and age.

Imaging and Quantitative Analysis of the Interstitial Space in the Caudate Nucleus in a Rotenone-Induced Rat Model of Parkinson's Disease Using Tracer-based MRI.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by pathological changes within several deep structures of the brain, including the substantia nigra and caudate nucleus. However, changes in interstitial fluid (ISF) flow and the microstructure of the interstitial space (ISS) in the caudate nucleus in PD have not been reported. In this study, we used tracer-based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to quantitatively investigate the alterations in ISS and visualize ISF flow in the caudate nucleus in a rotenone-induced rat model of PD treated with and without madopar.

Neuroprotective Effects of a Standardized Flavonoid Extract from Safflower against a Rotenone-Induced Rat Model of Parkinson's Disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a major age-related neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra par compacta (SNpc). Rotenone is a neurotoxin that is routinely used to model PD to aid in understanding the mechanisms of neuronal death. Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius.