Prevalence and associated factors of adult overweight and obesity in Southwestern China.

Background: Data on the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Southwestern China were limited. The aims of this study were to estimate the prevalence of overweight/obesity and their associated factors in this area.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 2013 to 2014 in Chengdu and Chongqing, two megacities in Southwestern China.

Structural neuroimaging abnormality and neurocognitive deficit in the first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients (FDR) compared to the first-episode patients with schizophrenia (FEP) and healthy controls.

The existing evidence regarding structural neuroimaging alternations during the premorbid and prodromal stages of psychosis remains limited and inconsistent. Gaining a deeper insight into the morphological brain variations could potentially advance the early diagnosis of high-risk individuals for psychosis, thereby offering a clearer understanding of the underlying mechanisms that lead to the progression towards mental disorders, particularly schizophrenia. In our study, we conducted comprehensive face-to-face clinical interviews, psychiatric symptom assessments, and neurocognitive evaluation for 25 first-episode patients with schizophrenia (FEP), 35 first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients (FDR), and 22 healthy controls (HC).

Glial activation among individuals with neurological post-acute sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019: A positron emission tomography study of brain fog using [F]-FEPPA.

Background: This study examined the regional distribution of glial activation in essential workers with neurological post-acute sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infections (N-PASC).

Methods: We injected ≤185 MBq of [F]-FEPPA as an intravenous bolus and positron-emission tomography over 2 h. To measure distribution volume (V) we recruited 24 essential workers (14 N-PASC, 10 Never-COVID-19 Controls, of whom 22 successfully placed arterial lines).

A central role for acetylcholine in entorhinal cortex function and dysfunction with age in humans and mice.

Structural and functional changes in the entorhinal cortex (EC) are among the earliest signs of cognitive aging. Here, we ask whether a compromised cholinergic system influences early EC impairments and plays a primary role in EC cognition. We evaluated the relationship between loss of integrity of cholinergic inputs to the EC and cognitive deficits in otherwise healthy humans and mice.

Body mass index, regional adipose deposition, and clinical outcomes in non-ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy: a prospective cohort study.

Aim: To assess the relationship between body mass index (BMI), subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT), visceral adipose tissue (VAT), epicardial adipose tissue (EAT), pericardial adipose tissue (PAT) and clinical outcomes in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) patients.

Methods: Non-ischemic DCM patients were prospectively enrolled. Regional adipose tissue, cardiac function, and myocardial tissue characteristics were measured by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR).

Applications of transcranial direct current stimulation over vagus nerve on dysphagia after stroke.

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) has been commonly employed for the functional rehabilitation of stroke patients. This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effects of transcranial direct current stimulation on the vagus nerve (TDCSVN) in improving dysphagia in stroke patients. Patients experiencing dysphagia following a stroke were diagnosed with dysphagia by a water swallow test.

Comparative genetic analysis of blood and semen samples in sperm donors from Hunan, China.

Objectives: At present, most genetic tests or carrier screening are performed with blood samples, and the known carrier rate of disease-causing variants is also derived from blood. For semen donors, what is really passed on to offspring is the pathogenic variant in their sperm. This study aimed to determine whether pathogenic variants identified in the sperm of young semen donors are also present in their blood, and whether matching results for blood are consistent with results for sperm.

CD69CD103CD8 tissue-resident memory T cells possess stronger anti-tumor activity and predict better prognosis in colorectal cancer.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most prevalent cancers worldwide. Despite advancements in therapeutic methodologies, it still causes a high rate of patient mortality. CD8 tissue-resident memory T (TRM) cells are strategically positioned to mediate effective anti-tumor responses.

Exposure duration and cerebral amyloidosis in the olfactory cortex of World Trade Center responders: A positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance imaging study.

Background: Amyloid-β proteins, a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, are believed to play an adaptive role in the cerebral immune response.

Objective: Amyloid is believed to play a role in cerebral immune response and could play a similar role in response to air pollution exposures. In the present study, we examined whether WTC exposure duration was associated with cerebral amyloidosis in WTC responders.

TopoTxR: A topology-guided deep convolutional network for breast parenchyma learning on DCE-MRIs.

Characterization of breast parenchyma in dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) is a challenging task owing to the complexity of underlying tissue structures. Existing quantitative approaches, like radiomics and deep learning models, lack explicit quantification of intricate and subtle parenchymal structures, including fibroglandular tissue. To address this, we propose a novel topological approach that explicitly extracts multi-scale topological structures to better approximate breast parenchymal structures, and then incorporates these structures into a deep-learning-based prediction model via an attention mechanism.

Research on fractional-order memory system signals based on Loop-By-Loop Progressive Iterative Method.

This article abandons the traditional Laplace transform and proposes a new method for studying fractional-order circuits, which is the Loop-By-Loop Progressive Iterative Method(LPIM). Firstly, in order to demonstrate the correctness of LPIM, the fractance circuit, which is a relatively mature and simple form in fractional-order circuits, was chosen as the research object. The output signals of fractance circuit were studied for the first time using Laplace transform and LPIM, respectively.

Glycodiversification of gentamicins through glycosyltransferase swapping enabled the creation of novel hybrid aminoglycoside antibiotics with potent activity and low ototoxicity.

Aminoglycosides (AGs) are a class of antibiotics with a broad spectrum of activity. However, their use is limited by safety concerns associated with nephrotoxicity and ototoxicity, as well as drug resistance. To address these issues, semi-synthetic approaches for modifying natural AGs have generated new generations of AGs, however, with limited types of modification due to significant challenges in synthesis.

A rapid and reliable targeted LC-MS/MS method for quantitative analysis of the Tryptophan-NAD metabolic network disturbances in tissues and blood of sleep deprivation mice.

Background: TRY-NAD metabolic network includes TRY (tryptophan), 5-HT (5-hydroxytryptamine), KYN (kynurenine), and NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) pathway, which plays a significant role in neurological diseases and ageing. It is important to monitor these metabolites for studying the pathological anatomy of disease and treatment of responses evaluation. Although previous studies have reported quantitative methods for several metabolites in the network, the bottlenecks of simultaneously quantifying the whole metabolic network are their similar structures, diverse physico-chemical properties, and instability.

Aerobic Exercise Activates AMPK/PGC-1α Pathway, Inhibits Cardiomyocyte Apoptosis Improves Mitochondrial and Infarcted Heart Function.

Aerobic exercise (AE) has attracted considerable research attention as a non-invasive therapeutic tool in recent years. Accumulating evidence has revealed its protective role against a wide range of diseases. In this study, we aimed to establish whether AE could inhibit apoptosis in infarcted cardiomyocytes and protect the heart.

Distribution of microplastics and phthalic acid esters during dry anaerobic digestion of food waste and potential microbial degradation analysis.

Food waste (FW) and its biogas residue were considered as sources of terrestrial microplastics (MPs) and phthalic acid esters (PAEs) contamination. However, there was a lack of research and understanding of the MPs and PAEs pollution problem in FW dry anaerobic digestion process (DADP). The MPs and PAEs in three stages of the DADP with the largest monomer disposal scale in China were identified.

Age-dependent decrease of circulating T follicular helper cells correlates with disease severity in elderly patients with COVID-19.

Overwhelming evidence has shown that aging is a significant risk factor for COVID-19-related hospitalizations, death and other adverse health outcomes. Particular T cell subsets that susceptible to aging and associated with COVID-19 disease severity requires further elucidation. Our study recruited 57 elderly patients with acute COVID-19 and 27 convalescent donors.

Epigallocatechin Gallate Derivative Y6 Reverses Oxaliplatin Resistance in Hepatocellular Carcinoma via Targeting the MiR-338-3p/HIF-1α/TWIST Axis to Inhibit EMT.

Background: The emergence of drug resistance to oxaliplatin (OXA) is one of the critical obstacles in the therapy of advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC). As an ethyl derivative of the natural compound epigallocatechin gallate (epigallocatechin-3-gallate, EGCG), Y6 was found to be able to enhance the sensitivity of HCC cells to doxorubicin. This study aimed to investigate the effect of Y6 on oxaliplatin resistance in HCC.

Thoracoscopic pulmonary resection combined with real-time image-guided percutaneous ablation for multiple pulmonary nodules: a novel surgical approach and literature review.

Background: Due to the widespread use of computed tomography (CT) screening and advances in diagnostic techniques, an increasing number of patients with multiple pulmonary nodules are being detected and pathologically diagnosed as synchronous multiple primary lung cancers (sMPLC). It has become a new challenge to treat multiple pulmonary nodules and obtain a favorable prognosis while minimizing the perioperative risk for patients. The purpose of this study was to summarize the preliminary experience with a hybrid surgery combining pulmonary resection and ablation for the treatment of sMPLC and to discuss the feasibility of this novel procedure with a literature review.

Aerobic training attenuates cardiac remodeling in mice post-myocardial infarction by inhibiting the p300/CBP-associated factor.

Aerobic training (AT), an effective form of cardiac rehabilitation, has been shown to be beneficial for cardiac repair and remodeling after myocardial infarction (MI). The p300/CBP-associated factor (PCAF) is one of the most important lysine acetyltransferases and is involved in various biological processes. However, the role of PCAF in AT and AT-mediated cardiac remodeling post-MI has not been determined.

The activation of AMPK/PGC-1α/GLUT4 signaling pathway through early exercise improves mitochondrial function and mitigates ischemic brain damage.

Mitochondria play a crucial role in maintaining cellular energy supply and serve as a source of energy for repairing nerve damage following a stroke. Given that exercise has the potential to enhance energy metabolism, investigating the impact of exercise on mitochondrial function provides a plausible mechanism for stroke treatment. In our study, we established the middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model in Sprague-Dawley rats and implemented early exercise intervention.