Amygdala abnormalities across disease stages in patients with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

To examine selective atrophy patterns and resting-state functional connectivity (FC) alterations in the amygdala at different stages of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and to explore any correlations between amygdala abnormalities and neuropsychiatric symptoms. We used the King's clinical staging system for ALS to divide 83 consecutive patients with ALS into comparable subgroups at different disease stages. We explored the pattern of selective amygdala subnucleus atrophy and amygdala-based whole-brain FC alteration in these patients and 94 healthy controls (HCs).

Hypothalamic subregion abnormalities are related to body mass index in patients with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Objective: To investigate atrophy patterns in hypothalamic subunits at different stages of ALS and examine correlations between hypothalamic subunit volume and clinical information.

Methods: We used the King's clinical staging system to divide 91 consecutive ALS patients into the different disease stages. We investigated patterns of hypothalamic atrophy using a recently published automated segmentation method in ALS patients and in 97 healthy controls.

Epidemiological and Clinical Characteristics of Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease: A Retrospective Study in Eastern China.

We aimed to characterize the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) in eastern China in this retrospective study. This study enrolled 67 patients with sCJD hospitalized in a grade-A tertiary hospital in eastern China from January 2010 to January 2020. Demographic data, clinical symptoms, brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), electroencephalogram (EEG), cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) 14-3-3 protein test, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and DNA sequence determination of genes were collected and analyzed.

Hippocampal subfield and anterior-posterior segment volumes in patients with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Neuroimaging studies of hippocampal volumes in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) have reported inconsistent results. Our aims were to demonstrate that such discrepancies are largely due to atrophy of different regions of the hippocampus that emerge in different disease stages of ALS and to explore the existence of co-pathology in ALS patients. We used the well-validated King's clinical staging system for ALS to classify patients into different disease stages.

The efficacy and safety of antiepileptics in the prophylaxis of pediatric migraine: the meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background: Migraine is the most common primary headache among children and adolescents. The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of antiepileptic drugs in the prevention of pediatric migraine.

Methods: PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases were searched for eligible published RCTs from January 1970 to June 2020.

The Efficacy and Safety of Topiramate in the Prevention of Pediatric Migraine: An Update Meta-Analysis.

Migraine is the most common acute primary headache in children and adolescents. In 2014, topiramate became the first preventive drug for migraine, approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for adolescents. This meta-analysis was aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of topiramate in the prevention of pediatric migraine.

High prevalence of sleep disorders and behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia in late-onset Alzheimer disease: A study in Eastern China.

Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative brain disease that causes cognitive impairment in the elderly. Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD), also known as neuropsychiatric symptoms, represent a heterogeneous group of non-cognitive symptoms and behaviors for AD patients. Sleep disorder is one closely-related psychiatric symptom of AD.

Impaired Cerebral Autoregulation in Alzheimer's Disease: A Transcranial Doppler Study.

Background: Vasculature changes have been observed in Alzheimer's disease (AD). AD-related vascular pathology might impair cerebral autoregulation (CA).

Objective: This study was designed to evaluate CA of AD patients by using transcranial doppler (TCD).

The combined presence of hypertension and vitamin D deficiency increased the probability of the occurrence of small vessel disease in China.

Background: The exact relationship between 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH) D] levels and small vessel disease (SVD) are not clear in China. The aim of this study was to determine such the association between 25(OH) D and SVD in China.

Methods: We retrospectively enrolled 106 patients with SVD and 115 controls between Jan 2017 and Dec 2017.

DYRK1A aggravates β cell dysfunction and apoptosis by promoting the phosphorylation and degradation of IRS2.

In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of dual-specificity tyrosine-(Y)-phosphorylation regulated kinase 1A (DYRK1A), which is one of the most important regulators of Alzheimer's disease development, in islet β cell dysfunction and apoptosis. We found significantly increased expression of DYRK1A in both the hippocampus and pancreatic islets of APP/PS1 transgenic mice than in wild-type littermates. Furthermore, we observed that the overexpression of DYRK1A greatly aggravated β cell apoptosis.

Subacute Combined Degeneration, Pernicious Anemia and Gastric Neuroendocrine Tumor Occured Simultaneously Caused by Autoimmune Gastritis.

Subacute combined degeneration (SCD) is a relatively rare myelopathy mainly caused by vitamin B (VitB12) deficiency. There are many causes contributing to VitB12 deficiency. Autoimmune gastritis might lead to severe VitB12 malabsorption and in its advanced stage pernicious anemia (PA) may occur.

The role of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in the treatment of cognitive impairment in patients with Alzheimer's disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Although repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has been considered a potentially effective treatment for cognitive impairment in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), previous studies have produced inconsistent results. The objective of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the effects of rTMS on cognitive function in patients with AD.

Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, MEDLINE and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) were searched for relevant terms.

Subjective cognitive decline: preclinical manifestation of Alzheimer's disease.

Subjective cognitive decline (SCD), characterized by a very early and subtle cognitive decline prior to the appearance of objective cognitive impairment, is considered to be the preclinical manifestation of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Given the lack of significant abnormalities in standardized neuropsychological assessments for individuals with SCD, biochemical and neuroimaging biomarkers may be important indicators of the preclinical stage of AD. The application of various biomarkers derived from the cerebrospinal fluid and neuroimaging thus has the potential to make AD-related pathology detectable in vivo.

Three sporadic cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in China and their clinical analysis.

The present study described the characteristics of three cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in China and analyzed their clinical presentations. The clinical information of the three cases was collected and analyzed. Blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) specimens of the patients were collected for detection of the prion protein (PRNP) gene and 14-3-3 protein levels.

Attitudes Toward Advance Directives Among Patients and Their Family Members in China.

Objectives: Chinese people are generally unfamiliar with the concept of advance care planning or advance directives (ACP/ADs), which raises dilemmas in life-support choice and can even affect clinical decision making. To understand and address the issues involved better, we investigated the awareness of ACP/ADs in China, as well as people's attitudes toward medical autonomy and end-of-life care.

Design: A multicenter cross-sectional survey, conducted from August 1 to December 31, 2016.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation improves cognitive function of Alzheimer's disease patients.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) acts as a kind of widely-applied and non-invasive method in the intervention of some neurological disorders. This prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial investigates the effect of rTMS on 30 cases of Alzheimer's disease (AD) participants, who were classified into mild and moderate groups. Neuropsychological tests were carried out using the AD Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale (ADAS-cog), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), and World Health Organization University of California-Los Angeles, Auditory Verbal Learning Test (WHO-UCLA AVLT) before, immediately after, and 6 weeks after the intervention.

Mesenchymal stem cells rescue injured endothelial cells in an in vitro ischemia-reperfusion model via tunneling nanotube like structure-mediated mitochondrial transfer.

Mesenchymal stem cells can be used as a novel treatment of ischemic vascular disease; however, their therapeutic effect and mechanism of action require further evaluation. Mitochondrial dysfunction has core functions in ischemia-reperfusion injury of the microvascular network. A recent discovery has shown that intercellular communication using tunneling nanotubes can transfer mitochondria between adjacent cells.

Application of magnetic resonance spectroscopy in patients with alternating hemiplegia of childhood: findings on metabolic dysfunctions.

Objective: Alternating hemiplegia of childhood (AHC) is a rare neurodevelopmental syndrome of uncertain etiology. Although the use of magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) for the study of neurologic diseases has grown rapidly over the past decade, its use for AHC patients is quite new. This study was aimed at investigating changes of brain metabolites in patients with alternating hemiplegia of childhood (AHC) during the hemiplegic ictal phases and interictal phases by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((1)H-MRS).

Neuroprotective effect of TAT PTD-Ngb fusion protein on primary cortical neurons against hypoxia-induced apoptosis.

Hypoxic-ischemic injury increases neuroglobin (Ngb) expression in the brain. In our previous study, we have generated a transactivator-of-transcription protein-transduction domain-neuroglobin fusion protein (TAT PTD-Ngb) that successfully mediated exogenous Ngb expression in the primary neurons. In this study, we further investigated the role of TAT PTD-Ngb in protecting neurons against hypoxia-induced apoptosis and explored the possible mechanism.

Primary angiitis of the central nervous system: a case report.

Primary angiitis of the central nervous system is a rare and difficult entity. Here we represented the clinical and pathological features of a patient with little response to steroid before definite diagnosis. The 50-year-old male had a fluctuating disease course for more than 3 years.

Mu-calpain mediates hippocampal neuron death in rats after lithium-pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus.

Status epilepticus (SE) is a severe clinical manifestation of epilepsy which causes brain damage. The pathological process and underlying mechanisms involved in the programmed cell death (PCD) are still not fully clear. In the current study, rats were induced SE by lithium-pilocarpine administration.

Bone mineral density and its related factors in elderly male Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes.

Background: There have been few investigations conducted on the epidemiology and risk factors of osteoporosis in patients with diabetes in China. The aim of this study was to disclose the percentage and the possible risk factors that influence bone mineral density (BMD) in this population.

Methods: One hundred thirty-one elderly male patients with type 2 diabetes (73.

Mitochondrial dysfunction and ultrastructural damage in the hippocampus of pilocarpine-induced epileptic rat.

Mitochondrial dysfunction has been implicated as a contributing factor in epileptic seizures. Present studies were carried out to decipher seizure-dependent changes in mitochondrial function and ultrastructure in the chronic condition of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) induced by pilocarpine in rat hippocampus. Enzyme assay revealed significant depression of the activity of mitochondrial- and nuclear-encoded cytochrome oxidase (COX).