T Thermometry for Deep Brain Stimulation Applications: A Comparison between Rapid Gradient Echo Sequences.

Background: T thermometry is considered a straight method for the safety monitoring of patients with deep brain stimulation (DBS) electrodes against radiofrequency-induced heating during Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), requiring different sequences and methods.

Objective: This study aimed to compare two T thermometry methods and two low specific absorption rate (SAR) imaging sequences in terms of the output image quality.

Material And Methods: In this experimental study, a gel phantom was prepared, resembling the brain tissue properties with a copper wire inside.

Feasibility of Robot-Assistance Hand Physiotherapy in Post-Stroke Patients.

Background: Patients with experienced stroke have suffered from long-term disability, especially in their distal upper extremities. Physiotherapy programs are considered a proper treatment to overcome the complications caused by stroke. The use of robots in physiotherapy is also considered a newfound procedure as an alternative to conventional methods.

Electrospun nanofiber-based sensors for the detection of chemical and biological contaminants/hazards in the food industries.

Food contamination reveals a major health risk globally and presents a significant challenge for the food industry. It can stem from biological contaminants like pathogens, parasites, and viruses, or chemical contaminants such as heavy metals, pesticides, drugs, and hormones. There is also the possibility of naturally occurring hazardous chemicals.

The Relationship between Structure of the Corticoreticular Tract and Walking Capacity in Children with Cerebral Palsy.

Background: Disruption in the descending pathways may lead to gait impairments in Cerebral Palsy (CP) children. Though, the mechanisms behind walking problems have not been completely understood.

Objective: We aimed to define the relationship between the structure of the corticoreticular tract (CRT) and walking capacity in children with CP.

Corpus Callosum Functional Activities in Children with Cerebral Palsy.

Background: Since cerebral palsy (CP) is a corollary to brain damage, persistent treatment should accompany an alteration in brain functional activity in line with clinical improvements. In this regard, the corpus callosum (CC), as a connecting bridge between the two hemispheres, plays an essential role.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effects of occupational therapy (OT) on CC functional activity and walking capacity in children with cerebral palsy.

Development of an electrochemical sensitive aptasensor based on a zeolite imidazolate framework-8 and gold nanoparticles for the determination of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is one of the most important pathogens that cause illness and food poisoning. In this research, using a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) modified with zeolite imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF 8) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), a sensitive electrochemical aptasensor has been made for the detection of the S.

Investigation of background, novelty and recent advance of iron (II,III) oxide- loaded on 3D polymer based scaffolds as regenerative implant for bone tissue engineering: A review.

Bone tissue engineering had crucial role in the bone defects regeneration, particularly when allograft and autograft procedures have limitations. In this regard, different types of scaffolds are used in tissue regeneration as fundamental tools. In recent years, magnetic scaffolds show promising applications in different biomedical applications (in vitro and in vivo).

Effective connectivity between deep brain stimulation targets in individuals with treatment-resistant depression.

The therapeutic effect of deep brain stimulation on patients with treatment-resistant depression is strongly dependent on the connectivity of the stimulation region with other regions associated with depression. The aims of this study are to characterize the effective connectivity between the brain regions playing important roles in depression and further investigate the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms of treatment-resistant depression and the mechanisms involving deep brain stimulation. Thirty-three individuals with treatment-resistant depression and 29 healthy control subjects were examined.

Propolis-loaded nanofiber scaffolds based on polyvinyl alcohol and polycaprolactone.

Propolis-loaded electrospun nanofibers (PENs) have been regarded as promising candidates for biomedical purposes such as wound healing/dressing owing to their outstanding pharmacological and biological properties. This paper focuses on the development of electrospun nanofibers with optimum levels of propolis (PRP) and two polymer types (polycaprolactone (PCL) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)). Hence, response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to investigate the variation of the scaffold characteristics including porosity, average diameter, wettability, release, and tensile strength.

Chitosan-based electrospun nanofibers for diabetic foot ulcer management; recent advances.

Diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) healing has long been a major medical challenge. The type of dressing is an essential factor in wound healing, prevention of local infection, and scar formation. Today, smart wound dressings or wound healing patches can precisely control drug delivery to the target tissue and prevent this significant complication.

Deep Tissue Penetration of Bottle-Brush Polymers via Cell Capture Evasion and Fast Diffusion.

Drug nanocarriers (NCs) capable of crossing the vascular endothelium and deeply penetrating into dense tissues of the CNS could potentially transform the management of neurological diseases. In the present study, we investigated the interaction of bottle-brush (BB) polymers with different biological barriers and and compared it to nanospheres of similar composition. internalization and permeability assays revealed that BB polymers are not internalized by brain-associated cell lines and translocate much faster across a blood-brain barrier model compared to nanospheres of similar hydrodynamic diameter.

Contribution of altered corticospinal microstructure to gait impairment in children with cerebral palsy.

Objective: Corticospinal tract (CST) injury may lead to motor disorders in children with Cerebral Palsy (CP). However, the precise underlying mechanisms are still ambiguous. We aimed to characterize the CST structure and function in children with CP and determine their contributions to balance and gait impairments.

Effective connectivity between emotional and motor brain regions in people with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES).

Objective: To characterize the effective connectivity (EC) between the emotion and motor brain regions in patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES), based on resting-state spectral dynamic causal modeling (spDCM).

Methods: Twenty-three patients with PNES and twenty-five healthy control (HC) subjects underwent resting-state fMRI scanning. The coupling parameters indicating the causal interactions between eight brain regions associated with emotion, executive control, and motion were estimated for both groups, using resting-state fMRI spDCM.

Characterization of brain functional connectivity in treatment-resistant depression.

Objective: To characterize the functional connectivity (FC) of target brain regions for deep brain stimulation (DBS) in patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD), and to evaluate its gender and brain lateralization dependence.

Methods: Thirty-one TRD patients and twenty-nine healthy control (HC) subjects participated. FC of subcallosal cingulate gyrus (SCG), ventral caudate (VCa), nucleus accumbens (NAc), lateral habenula (LHb), and inferior thalamic peduncle (ITP) were evaluated using resting-state fMRI.

Localizing confined epileptic foci in patients with an unclear focus or presumed multifocality using a component-based EEG-fMRI method.

Precise localization of epileptic foci is an unavoidable prerequisite in epilepsy surgery. Simultaneous EEG-fMRI recording has recently created new horizons to locate foci in patients with epilepsy and, in comparison with single-modality methods, has yielded more promising results although it is still subject to limitations such as lack of access to information between interictal events. This study assesses its potential added value in the presurgical evaluation of patients with complex source localization.

Seizure incidence among neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder patients.

Background: Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSDs) are a group of neuroinflammatory diseases, which mainly affect the optic nerve and spinal cord. NMOSD is an astrocytic channelopathy involving the aquaporin-4 (AQP4) water channels in the central nervous system. Patients can present with seizure attacks as a first manifestation or relapse.

Plasmon-Free Polymeric Nanowrinkled Substrates for Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy of Two-Dimensional Materials.

We report plasmon-free polymeric nanowrinkled substrates for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Our simple, rapid, and cost-effective fabrication method involves depositing a poly(ethylene glycol)diacrylate (PEGDA) prepolymer solution droplet on a fully polymerized, flat PEGDA substrate, followed by drying the droplet at room conditions and plasma treatment, which polymerizes the deposited layer. The thin polymer layer buckles under axial stress during plasma treatment due to its different mechanical properties from the underlying soft substrate, creating hierarchical wrinkled patterns.

Brain functional connectivity in individuals with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES): An application of graph theory.

Objective: To determine brain functional connectivity (FC), based on the graph theory, in individuals with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES), in order to better understand the mechanisms underlying this disease.

Methods: Twenty-three patients with PNES and twenty-five healthy control subjects were examined. Alterations in FC within the whole brain were examined using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Therapeutic effects of robotic rehabilitation on Neural and Muscular Abnormalities associated with the Spastic Ankle in Stroke Survivors.

Spasticity is a common ailment following stroke, which can cause pain, contracture, abnormal limb posture and functional limitation. Early management of post-stroke spasticity is vital to reduce these complications, and improve function and help patients become independent. We propose a therapeutic program based on applying a series of vibrations to the ankle joints at specific ankle position as well as over the range of motion using a rehabilitation robotic system to reduce the neural and muscular abnormalities associated with spasticity.

Therapeutic Effects of an Anti-Gravity Treadmill (AlterG) Training on Neuromuscular Abnormalities Associated with Spasticity in Children with Cerebral Palsy.

We aimed to characterize the therapeutic effects of Anti-Gravity Treadmill (AlterG) Training on neuromuscular abnormalities associated with spasticity in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Eighteen subjects were divided into two groups; AlterG and control. All subjects received up to 40 minutes of training 3 times a week for 8 weeks.

Graph theory application with functional connectivity to distinguish left from right temporal lobe epilepsy.

Objective: To investigate the application of graph theory with functional connectivity to distinguish left from right temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE).

Methods: Alterations in functional connectivity within several brain networks - default mode (DMN), attention (AN), limbic (LN), sensorimotor (SMN) and visual (VN) - were examined using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI). The study accrued 21 left and 14 right TLE as well as 17 nonepileptic control subjects.

Proposing a convolutional neural network for stress assessment by means of derived heart rate from functional near infrared spectroscopy.

Background: Stress is known as one of the major factors threatening human health. A large number of studies have been performed in order to either assess or relieve stress by analyzing the brain and heart-related signals.

Method: In this study, a method based on the Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) approach is proposed to assess stress induced by the Montreal Imaging Stress Task.

Design and Preliminary Evaluation of a Novel Robotic System for Mobilization of Glenohumeral Joint.

Joints mobilization is an essential but subjective treatment in the physical therapy of the patients with joint hypomobility such as frozen shoulder. Recently many instrumented force and displacement indentations have been proposed for assessing and diagnosis of joints stiffness. The devices are not, however, feasible and applicable for use in clinical and therapeutic conditions considering the requirements of the joints mobilization principles in physiotherapy.

The Effects of Anti-gravity Treadmill Training on Gait Characteristics in Children with Cerebral Palsy.

Cerebral palsy is a disorder that affects muscle tone, movement and motor skills. Most of the children with cerebral palsy (CP) are not able to walk or can walk in incorrect pattern and are dependent on assistive devices. Recently an antigravity treadmill has been found to be beneficial as a new therapeutic approach.