Persistent alterations in gray matter in COVID-19 patients experiencing sleep disturbances: a 3-month longitudinal study.

JOURNAL/nrgr/04.03/01300535-202510000-00030/figure1/v/2024-11-26T163120Z/r/image-tiff Sleep disturbances are among the most prevalent neuropsychiatric symptoms in individuals who have recovered from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infections. Previous studies have demonstrated abnormal brain structures in patients with sleep disturbances who have recovered from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Alteration of white matter microstructure in patients with sleep disorders after COVID-19 infection.

Background: The pathophysiology of coronasomnia remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate changes in white matter (WM) microstructure and inflammatory factors in patients with sleep disorders (SD) characterized by poor sleep quantity, quality, or timing following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection in the acute phase (within one month) and whether these changes could be recovered at 3-month follow-up.

Methods: 29 acute COVID-19 patients with SD (COVID_SD) and 27 acute COVID-19 patients without SD (COVID_NonSD) underwent diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), tested peripheral blood inflammatory cytokines level, and measured Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and matched 30 uninfected healthy controls.

Sepsis‑induced cardiac dysfunction and pathogenetic mechanisms (Review).

Sepsis is a manifestation of the immune and inflammatory response to infection, which may lead to multi‑organ failure. Health care advances have improved outcomes in critical illness, but it still remains the leading cause of death. Septic cardiomyopathy is heart dysfunction brought on by sepsis.

Molecular Mechanism Pathways of Natural Compounds for the Treatment of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease in the world, and its incidence continues to increase each year. Yet, there is still no definitive drug that can stop its development. This review focuses mainly on lipotoxicity, oxidative stress, inflammation, and intestinal flora dysbiosis to understand NAFLD's pathogenesis.

Recent Advances in Transfer-Free Synthesis of High-Quality Graphene.

High-quality graphene obtained by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique holds significant importance in constructing innovative electronic and optoelectronic devices. Direct growth of graphene over target substrates readily eliminates cumbersome transfer processes, offering compatibility with practical application scenarios. Recent years have witnessed growing strategic endeavors in the preparation of transfer-free graphene with favorable quality.

Integrating physicomechanical and biological strategies for BTE: biomaterials-induced osteogenic differentiation of MSCs.

Large bone defects are a major global health concern. Bone tissue engineering (BTE) is the most promising alternative to avoid the drawbacks of autograft and allograft bone. Nevertheless, how to precisely control stem cell osteogenic differentiation has been a long-standing puzzle.

[Research progress on the mechanism of ferroptosis in septic cardiomyopathy].

Sepsis is a serious complication of infection, and its further development may lead to multi-organ dysfunction syndrome. Sepsis cardiomyopathy is a common complication of sepsis and has been directly linked to high mortality. Although the pathogenesis of septic cardiomyopathy is not fully understood, in-depth study of the pathogenesis of septic cardiomyopathy and the identification of its potential therapeutic targets may reduce mortality in patients with sepsis.

In vitro digestion and fecal fermentation behaviors of polysaccharides from Ziziphus Jujuba cv. Pozao and its interaction with human gut microbiota.

This study aimed to explore the dynamic changes of structural properties of polysaccharide from Ziziphus Jujuba cv. Pozao (JPS) during in vitro digestion and fermentation as well as its impacts on gut microbiota. Gastrointestinal digestion resulted a significant decrease in the reducing sugar content (C), while a slight increase in the molecular weight.

Molecular Mechanistic Pathways Targeted by Natural Compounds in the Prevention and Treatment of Diabetic Kidney Disease.

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is one of the most common complications of diabetes, and its prevalence is still growing rapidly. However, the efficient therapies for this kidney disease are still limited. The pathogenesis of DKD involves glucotoxicity, lipotoxicity, inflammation, oxidative stress, and renal fibrosis.

Component-Effect Relationship between HPLC Fingerprints and Lipid-Lowering Activity of Buyang Huanwu Decoction.

Buyang Huanwu Decoction (BHD) has lipid-lowering and antioxidant effects. In this study, HPLC was used to establish the fingerprint of extracts from different polar parts of BHD. Through the L02 cell lipid deposition model induced by oleic acid, extracts from different polar parts of BHD were administered for treatment.

Hawthorn Juice Simulation System for Pectin and Polyphenol Adsorption Behavior: Kinetic Modeling Properties and Identification of the Interaction Mechanism.

The interaction between polyphenols and polysaccharides plays an important role in increasing the turbidity stability of fruit juice and improving unpleasant sensory experiences. The binding adsorption behavior between hawthorn pectin (HP) and polyphenols (epicatechin and chlorogenic acid) accorded with the monolayer adsorption behavior driven by chemical action and were better fitted by pseudo-second order dynamic equation and Langmuir model. The HP binding sites (Qm) and adsorption capacity (Qe) to epicatechin were estimated at 75.

Network pharmacology and molecular docking study on the effect of Kaempferol in treatment of metabolic associated fatty liver disease.

Objective: To study therapeutic effect of kaempferol on metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) by network pharmacology and molecular docking combined with cell experiments.

Methods: First, use the SwissTargetPrediction database to predict the targets of kaempferol, and collect the targets of MAFLD through the Disgenet database and the GeneCards database. Then, the common target of kaempferol and MAFLD was enriched and analyzed by the Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, and the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed through the string database to obtain the key targets, and carry out molecular docking of key targets with kaempferol; In cell experiment, oleic acid induced steatosis in HepG2 cells, which was intervened by kaempferol, the level of triglyceride (TG) was detected, the lipid deposition was observed by oil red O staining, and the protein expression was detected by Western blot.

Boosted Productivity in Single-Tile-Based DNA Polyhedra Assembly by Simple Cation Replacement.

Cations such as divalent magnesium ion (Mg ) play an essential role in DNA self-assembly. However, the strong electrostatic shielding effect of Mg would be disadvantageous in some situations that require relatively weak interactions to allow a highly reversible error-correcting mechanism in the process of assembly. Herein, by substituting the conventional divalent Mg with monovalent sodium ion (Na ), we have achieved one-pot high-yield assembly of tile-based DNA polyhedra at micromolar concentration of tiles, at least 10 times higher than the DNA concentrations reported previously.

[Effects of carboidiimide with different bonding techniques on the property of dentin bonding].

Purpose: To explore the effects of carbodiimide combined with different bonding techniques on the property of dentin bonding.

Methods: 64 third molars in vitro were randomly divided into 8 groups(n=8), including EWB and EWBa (no pretreatment+ethanol-wet bonding), E-EWB and E-EWBa (0.5 mol/L EDC+ethanol-wet bonding), E-WB and E-WBa (0.

The Structure of the Porcine Deltacoronavirus Main Protease Reveals a Conserved Target for the Design of Antivirals.

The existing zoonotic coronaviruses (CoVs) and viral genetic variants are important microbiological pathogens that cause severe disease in humans and animals. Currently, no effective broad-spectrum antiviral drugs against existing and emerging CoVs are available. The CoV main protease (M) plays an essential role in viral replication, making it an ideal target for drug development.

[The influence of carbodiimide in different solvents on bonding performance of acetone-based etch-and-rinsing adhesive system].

Purpose: To investigate the influence of carbodiimide (EDC) in water, ethanol and acetone on bonding performance of acetone-based etch-and-rinsing adhesive system.

Methods: Sixty-four third molars in vitro were randomly divided into 8 groups according to the types of pretreatment agents, with or without aging(n=8), group S0 and S0a: deionized water; group S and Sa: EDC in water; group E and Ea: EDC in ethanol; group B and Ba: EDC in acetone. After pretreatment, the adhesive specimens were prepared by Prime Bond NT.

Structural insights into substrate recognition by the type VII secretion system.

Type VII secretion systems (T7SSs) are found in many disease related bacteria including Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). ESX-1 [early secreted antigen 6 kilodaltons (ESAT-6) system 1] is one of the five subtypes (ESX-1~5) of T7SSs in Mtb, where it delivers virulence factors into host macrophages during infection. However, little is known about the molecular details as to how this occurs.

Adsorptive Removal of Cationic Dye from Aqueous Solution by Graphene Oxide/Cellulose Acetate Composite.

The application of graphene oxide in water treatment is facing a rigorous challenge of how to separate nanoadsorbents from aqueous solution using conventional methods after adsorption. Herein, a new type of easily separated composite was fabricated using cellulose acetate (CA) crosslinked with graphene oxide (CAGO) and a simple vacuum freeze-drying method. The CAGO composites were subject to SEM, FTIR, TGA, and BET characterizations.

Chemical synthesis, crystal structure, versatile evaluation of their biological activities and molecular simulations of novel pyrithiobac derivatives.

Since pyrithiobac (PTB) is a successful commercial herbicide with very low toxicity against mammals, it is worth exploring its derivatives for an extensive study. Herein, a total of 35 novel compounds were chemically synthesized and single crystal of 6-6 was obtained to confirm the molecular structure of this family of compounds. The novel PTB derivatives were fully evaluated against various biological platforms.

Theoretical Evaluation of the Influence of Molecular Packing Mode on the Intramolecular Reorganization Energy of Oligothiophene Molecules.

Accurate determination of the relationships among packing mode, molecular structure and charge transfer mobility for oligothiophene analogues has been significantly impeded, due to the lack of crystal structure information. In the current study, molecular dynamics (MD) were used to investigate the packing mode of non-, methyl- and ethyl-substituted poly(3-alkylthiophenes) (P3ATs). Obvious conformational changes were observed when comparing the packed and isolated oligothiophene molecules, indicating the important influence of packing mode on the geometric structures of these materials.

Isolation of Stem-Like Cancer Cells in Primary Endometrial Cancer Using Cell Surface Markers CD133 and CXCR4.

Endometrial cancer (EC) is the most common familiar gynecologic malignant tumor identified in the female reproductive system and has been increasing yearly. In this study, we will identify the surface markers and stem cell markers related with cancer stem cells (CSCs) of EC. Tissue samples were obtained from endometrial cancer patients during surgical procedures.

Fabrication of 3D-culture platform with sandwich architecture for preserving liver-specific functions of hepatocytes using 3D bioprinter.

The development of new three-dimensional (3D) cell culture system that maintains the physiologically relevant signals of hepatocytes is essential in drug discovery and tissue engineering research. Conventional two-dimensional (2D) culture yields cell growth, proliferation, and differentiation. However, gene expression and signaling profiles can be different from in vivo environment.