Bidirectional associations among gallstone disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, kidney stone disease.

Background: A body of evidence has suggested bidirectional relationships among gallstone disease (GSD), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and kidney stone disease (KSD). However, the results are inconsistent, and studies on this topic in China are relatively few. Our goal is to explore the bidirectional associations among these three diseases through a multicenter study, systematic review, and meta-analysis.

Ambient chemical and physical approaches for the modulation of sleep and wakefulness.

Humans spend a third of their lives asleep. While the sleep-wake behaviors are primarily modulated by homeostasis and circadian rhythm, several ambient chemical and physical factors, including light, sound, odor, vibration, temperature, electromagnetic radiation, and ultrasound, also affect sleep and wakefulness. Light at different wavelengths has different effects on sleep and wakefulness.

The contribution of periaqueductal gray in the regulation of physiological and pathological behaviors.

Periaqueductal gray (PAG), an integration center for neuronal signals, is located in the midbrain and regulates multiple physiological and pathological behaviors, including pain, defensive and aggressive behaviors, anxiety and depression, cardiovascular response, respiration, and sleep-wake behaviors. Due to the different neuroanatomical connections and functional characteristics of the four functional columns of PAG, different subregions of PAG synergistically regulate various instinctual behaviors. In the current review, we summarized the role and possible neurobiological mechanism of different subregions of PAG in the regulation of pain, defensive and aggressive behaviors, anxiety, and depression from the perspective of the up-down neuronal circuits of PAG.

Adenosine and P1 receptors: Key targets in the regulation of sleep, torpor, and hibernation.

Sleep, torpor, and hibernation are three distinct hypometabolic states. However, they have some similar physiological features, such as decreased core body temperature and slowing heart rate. In addition, the accumulation of adenosine seems to be a common feature before entry into these three states, suggesting that adenosine and its receptors, also known as P1 receptors, may mediate the initiation and maintenance of these states.

A meta-analysis on the role of pre-existing chronic disease in the cardiac complications of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been associated with multiple direct and indirect cardiovascular complications. We sought to analyze the association of host co-morbidities (chronic respiratory illnesses, cardiovascular disease [CVD], hypertension or diabetes mellitus [DM]) with the acute cardiovascular complications associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Individual analyses of the majority of studies found median age was higher by ~10 years in patients with cardiovascular complications.

Kaempferol suppresses lipid accumulation in macrophages through the downregulation of cluster of differentiation 36 and the upregulation of scavenger receptor class B type I and ATP-binding cassette transporters A1 and G1.

The accumulation of foam cells in atherosclerotic lesions is a hallmark of early-stage atherosclerosis. Kaempferol has been shown to inhibit oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) uptake by macrophages; however, the underlying molecular mechanisms are not yet fully investigated. In this study, we shown that treatment with kaempferol markedly suppresses oxLDL-induced macrophage foam cell formation, which occurs due to a decrease in lipid accumulation and an increase in cholesterol efflux from THP-1-derived macrophages.