Are resting-state network alterations in late-life depression related to synaptic density? Findings of a combined 11C-UCB-J PET and fMRI study.

This study investigates the relationship between resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) topological properties and synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A (SV2A) positron emission tomography (PET) synaptic density (SD) in late-life depression (LLD). 18 LLD patients and 33 healthy controls underwent rs-fMRI, 3D T1-weighted MRI, and 11C-UCB-J PET scans to assess SD. The rs-fMRI data were utilized to construct weighted networks for calculating four global topological metrics, including clustering coefficient, characteristic path length, global efficiency, and small-worldness, and six nodal metrics, including nodal clustering coefficient, nodal characteristic path length, nodal degree, nodal strength, local efficiency, and betweenness centrality.

Impact of loading, heart rate, and short episodes of ischaemia on myocardial stiffness assessed using shear wave elastography in an open-chest animal model.

Aims: Shear wave elastography (SWE) is a new promising ultrasound modality that enables non-invasive measurement of the dynamic myocardial stiffness. The impact of varying physiological conditions on SWE measurement of left ventricular (LV) myocardial stiffness remains poorly investigated.

Methods And Results: Nineteen sheep were evaluated during open-chest surgery.

Fractures in Hereditary Neuromuscular Disorders: Frequency, Risk Factors, and Implications.

Background: Hereditary neuromuscular disorders (NMD) are associated with compromised bone health and elevated fracture risk, though data are largely lacking.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the prevalence and risk factors of fractures in hereditary NMD.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study in a cohort of adult patients with diverse hereditary NMD, using data from electronic medical records.

Caloric labels do not influence taste pleasantness and neural responses to erythritol and sucrose.

Introduction: The beneficial effects of substituting sugar with non-caloric sweeteners (NCSs) remain uncertain due to the mismatch between their rewarding sweet taste and lack of energy content. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies indicate an influence of cognitive processes (e.g.

Environmental variability across space and time drives the recolonization pattern of a historically persecuted large carnivore.

Wildlife populations are not static. Intrinsic and extrinsic factors affect individuals, which lead to spatiotemporal variation in population density and range. Yet, dynamics in density and their drivers are rarely documented, due in part to the inherent difficulty of studying long-term population-level phenomena at ecologically meaningful scales.

Natural language processing-based classification of early Alzheimer's disease from connected speech.

Introduction: The automated analysis of connected speech using natural language processing (NLP) emerges as a possible biomarker for Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, it remains unclear which types of connected speech are most sensitive and specific for the detection of AD.

Methods: We applied a language model to automatically transcribed connected speech from 114 Flemish-speaking individuals to first distinguish early AD patients from amyloid negative cognitively unimpaired (CU) and then amyloid negative from amyloid positive CU individuals using five different types of connected speech.

Magnetic Ball Chain Robots for Cardiac Arrhythmia Treatment.

This paper introduces a novel magnetic navigation system for cardiac ablation. The system is formed from two key elements: a magnetic ablation catheter consisting of a chain of spherical permanent magnets; and an actuation system comprised of two cart-mounted permanent magnets undergoing pure rotation. The catheter design enables a large magnetic content with the goal of minimizing the footprint of the actuation system for easier integration with the clinical workflow.

Ictal SPECT Imaging Findings in Parkinson's Disease with Rapid Eye Movement Sleep Behavior Disorder.

Background: Rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is an established prodrome and symptom of synucleinopathies. The pathophysiology of this disorder has been well studied but there is a lack of functional imaging data to illustrate the dysfunction in vivo.

Objectives: We aimed to investigate the functional changes of RBD, by performing ictal REM sleep SPECT, comparing subjects with Parkinson's Disease (PD) and evidence of RBD to subjects with PD and no RBD.

Comparison of Classical, Neural Network and Hybrid Models for Hysteretic Single-tendon Catheter Kinematics.

While robotic control of catheter motion can improve tip positioning accuracy, hysteresis arising from tendon friction and flexural deformation degrades kinematic modeling accuracy. In this paper, we compare the capabilities of three types of models for representing the forward and inverse kinematic maps of a clinical single-tendon cardiac catheter. Classical hysteresis models, neural networks and hybrid combinations of the two are included.

[Safety of use of electronic cigarettes: A systematic review of bronchopulmonary, cardiovascular and cancer risks].

As the effects of electronic cigarettes (ECs) have rapidly become widely known, we propose to take stock of recent findings on the bronchopulmonary and cardiovascular adverse effects (AEs) and the risks of cancer occurrence entailed by EC use. METHOD: We carried out a search from 2018 to October 19, 2023 on PubMed, adopting the PRISMA guidelines (2020) with the following keywords in "Titles and abstracts": electronic cigarette, or e-cigarette, or ENDS, AND safety or toxicology or effect or health effect, using "Systematic Review" as a filter. The inclusion criteria were: systematic review of in vitro or in vivo studies in English or French dealing with the risks of ECs for the bronchopulmonary system, the cardiovascular system, or cancer occurrence.

The effects of acute exercise on emotional pattern separation in adolescents and young adults.

Acute exercise has been associated with cognitive improvements, particularly in memory processes linked to the hippocampus, such as the ability to discriminate between similar stimuli, called hippocampal pattern separation. This can be assessed behaviorally with a mnemonic discrimination task and neurally with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Additionally, previous research has shown an emotional modulatory effect on pattern separation, involving the amygdala.

Early penumbral FLAIR changes predict tissue fate in patients with large vessel occlusions.

Background: In patients with an acute ischemic stroke, the penumbra is defined as ischemic tissue that remains salvageable when reperfusion occurs. However, the expected clinical recovery congruent with penumbral salvage is not always observed.

Aims: We aimed to determine whether the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-defined penumbra includes irreversible neuronal loss that impedes expected clinical recovery after reperfusion.

When enough is enough: Optimising monitoring effort for large-scale wolf population size estimation in the Italian Alps.

The ongoing expansion of wolf () populations in Europe has led to a growing demand for up-to-date abundance estimates. Non-invasive genetic sampling (NGS) is now widely used to monitor wolves, as it allows individual identification and abundance estimation without physically capturing individuals. However, NGS is resource-intensive, partly due to the elusive behaviour and wide distribution of wolves, as well as the cost of DNA analyses.

Experimental study of particle impact on cohesive granular packing.

We investigate experimentally the impact process of sand particles onto a cohesive granular packing made of similar particles. We use a sand-oil mixture with varying liquid content to tune the cohesive strength of the packing. The outcome of the impact is analyzed in terms of the production of ejected particles from the packing.

Late Life Depression is Not Associated With Alzheimer-Type Tau: Preliminary Evidence From a Next-Generation Tau Ligand PET-MR Study.

Objective: To investigate whether tau accumulation is higher in late life depression (LLD) compared to non-depressed cognitively unimpaired (CU) older adults. To situate these findings in the neurodegeneration model of LLD by assessing group differences in tau and grey matter volume (GMV) between LLD, non-depressed CU and mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's Disease (MCI).

Design: Monocentric, cross-sectional study.

Plasma pTau181 and pTau217 predict asymptomatic amyloid accumulation equally well as amyloid PET.

The dynamic phase of preclinical Alzheimer's disease, as characterized by accumulating cortical amyloid-β, is a window of opportunity for amyloid-β-lowering therapies to have greater efficacy. Biomarkers that accurately predict amyloid-β accumulation may be of critical importance for participant inclusion in secondary prevention trials and thus enhance development of early Alzheimer's disease therapies. We compared the abilities of baseline plasma pTau181, pTau217 and amyloid-β PET load to predict future amyloid-β accumulation in asymptomatic elderly.

Lung volume recruitment and airway clearance for children at home in France.

Background: Airway clearance (ACT) and lung volume recruitment (LVR) techniques are used to manage bronchial secretions, increase cough efficiency and lung/chest wall recruitment, to prevent and treat respiratory tract infections. The aim of the study was to review the prescription of ACT/LVR techniques for home use in children in France.

Methods: All the centers of the national pediatric noninvasive ventilation (NIV) network were invited to fill in an anonymous questionnaire for every child aged ≤20 years who started a treatment with an ACT/LVR device between 2022 and 2023.

Test-retest reliability and follow-up of muscle magnetic resonance elastography in adults with and without muscle diseases.

Background: We investigated the potential of magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) stiffness measurements in skeletal muscles as an outcome measure, by determining its test-retest reliability, as well as its sensitivity to change in a longitudinal follow-up study.

Methods: We assessed test-retest reliability of muscle MRE in 20 subjects with (n = 5) and without (n = 15) muscle diseases and compared this to Dixon proton density fat fraction (PDFF) and volume measurements. Next, we measured MRE muscle stiffness in 21 adults with Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) and 21 age-matched healthy controls at baseline, and after 9 and 18 months.

scCross: efficient search for rare subpopulations across multiple single-cell samples.

Motivation: Identifying rare cell types is an important task to capture the heterogeneity of single-cell data, such as scRNA-seq. The widespread availability of such data enables to aggregate multiple samples, corresponding for example to different donors, into the same study. Yet, such aggregated data is often subject to batch effects between samples.

Fractioned-pattern radiation mapping, Part II: assessment.

In Part I, the authors proposed a theoretical background for predicting the radiation distribution in any optical system based on decomposing the emitting source power. Here, we describe the validity of this decomposition through a practical example that uses a radiating source and a single surface optical system. This source is calibrated in a metrology testbed that guarantees its traceability to the candela (cd), the International System (SI) base unit for luminous intensity .

Brain network topology and its cognitive impact in adult glioma survivors.

Structural brain network topology can be altered in case of a brain tumor, due to both the tumor itself and its treatment. In this study, we explored the role of structural whole-brain and nodal network metrics and their association with cognitive functioning. Fifty WHO grade 2-3 adult glioma survivors (> 1-year post-therapy) and 50 matched healthy controls underwent a cognitive assessment, covering six cognitive domains.

Neural responses to oral administration of erythritol vs. sucrose and sucralose explain differences in subjective liking ratings.

Introduction: High sugar intake is associated with many chronic diseases. However, non-caloric sweeteners (NCSs) might fail to successfully replace sucrose due to the mismatch between their rewarding sweet taste and lack of caloric content. The natural NCS erythritol has been proposed as a sugar substitute due to its satiating properties despite being non-caloric.