Identifying Risk Factors and Constructing Predictive Models for Wearing-Off and Dyskinesia in Chinese Patients With Parkinson's Disease on Long-Term Levodopa Therapy.

Aims: This study aimed to investigate the incidence and risk factors of motor complications including wearing-off (WO) and dyskinesia during long-term levodopa (LD) therapy in Chinese patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), and develop corresponding predictive models, thereby providing a basis for personalized treatment strategies.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 208 consecutive PD patients who were recruited. The presence of WO and dyskinesia was assessed by a 9-item wearing-off questionnaire and the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale part IV.

Eye movement and pupillary response abnormalities measured using virtual reality as biomarkers in the diagnosis of early-stage Parkinson's disease.

Objective: Characteristic ocular symptoms are expected to serve as potential biomarkers for early diagnosis of Parkinson's disease (PD). However, possible ocular impairments in PD patients are rarely studied. The study aimed to investigate eye movement characteristics and pupil diameter changes in early-stage PD patients using virtual reality (VR)-based system and explore their contribution in the diagnosis of early-stage PD.

cGAS-STING targeting offers novel therapeutic opportunities in neurological diseases.

Cyclic guanosine monophosphate (GMP)-adenosine monophosphate (AMP) (cGAMP) synthase (cGAS) is a cytosolic DNA sensor that produces the secondary messenger cGAMP. cGAMP activates the endoplasmic reticulum-associated adaptor stimulator of interferon genes (STING) and activates the innate immune system to produce a type I interferon response. Besides sensing microbial DNA, cGAS can also be activated by self-DNA or endogenous DNA, including that derived from genotoxic extranuclear chromatin and mitochondrially released DNA, indicating that cGAS-STING is an important mechanism in sterile inflammatory responses, autoimmunity, and cellular senescence.

Heart-on-a-chip: a revolutionary organ-on-chip platform for cardiovascular disease modeling.

Heart-on-a-chip (HoC) devices have emerged as a powerful tool for studying the human heart's intricate functions and dysfunctions in vitro. Traditional preclinical models, such as 2D cell cultures model and animal model, have limitations in accurately predicting human response to cardiovascular diseases and treatments. The HoC approach addresses these shortcomings by recapitulating the microscale anatomy, physiology, and biomechanics of the heart, thereby providing a more clinically relevant platform for drug testing, disease modeling, and personalized therapy.

Aerospace medicine in China: advancements and perspectives.

With the rapid growth of China's space industry, long-term manned space missions face challenges from the complex space environment, posing risks to human health. Aerospace medicine, a key field, addresses these risks by researching the impacts of space on biochemical changes, cognitive abilities, and immune systems. This article reviews China's aerospace medicine research, summarizing efforts from various institutions and offering insights for future developments in the field.

Higher serum cystatin C and matrix metalloproteinase 9 levels effectively predict in-stent restenosis after stent implantation for intracranial and extracranial arterial stenosis.

Objective: This paper was performed to unravel the predictive value of serum cystatin C (Cys C) and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) levels before vascular stent implantation for in-stent restenosis (ISR) 6-12 months after stent implantation for intracranial and extracranial arterial stenosis.

Methods: One hundred and ninety-eight patients who underwent dilatation stenting for intracranial and extracranial arterial stenosis and completed Digital Subtraction Angiography or head and neck CT- Angiography review were selected for the study and were divided into ISR group (n = 33) and no ISR (NISR) group (n = 165) according to the presence or absence of ISR. Serum levels of Cys C, MMP-9, triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), uric acid (UA), creatinine (Cr), homocysteine (Hcy), fibrinogen (FIB), total bilirubin (TBIL), endothelin-1 (ET-1), nitric oxide (NO), angiotensin II (Ang II), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels before vascular stent implantation were examined and compared between groups.

Exploring the biological basis of CT imaging features in pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors: a two-center study.

Medical imaging offered a non-invasive window to visualize tumors, with radiomics transforming these images into quantitative data for tumor phenotyping. However, the intricate web linking imaging features, clinical endpoints, and tumor biology was mostly uncharted. This study aimed to unravel the connections between CT imaging features and clinical characteristics, including tumor histopathological grading, clinical stage, and endocrine symptoms, alongside immunohistochemical markers of tumor cell growth, such as the Ki-67 index and nuclear mitosis rate.

Endovascular thrombectomy in wake-up stroke guided by arterial spin-labeling and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery versus diffusion-weighted imaging mismatch on MRI.

Objective: This purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness and safety of utilizing the arterial spin-labeling (ASL) combined with diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) combined with DWI double mismatch in the endovascular treatment of patients diagnosed with wake-up stroke (WUS).

Methods: In this single-center trial, patients diagnosed with WUS underwent thrombectomy if acute ischemic lesions were observed on DWI indicating large precerebral circulation occlusion. Patients with no significant parenchymal hypersignal on FLAIR and ASL imaging showing a hypoperfusion tissue to infarct core volume ratio of at least 1.

PNMC: Four-dimensional conebeam CT reconstruction combining prior network and motion compensation.

Four-dimensional conebeam computed tomography (4D CBCT) is an efficient technique to overcome motion artifacts caused by organ motion during breathing. 4D CBCT reconstruction in a single scan usually divides projections into different groups of sparsely sampled data based on the respiratory phases. The reconstructed images within each group present poor image quality due to the limited number of projections.

UBES: Unified scatter correction using ultrafast Boltzmann equation solver for conebeam CT.

A semi-analytical solution to the unified Boltzmann equation is constructed to exactly describe the scatter distribution on a flat-panel detector for high-quality conebeam CT (CBCT) imaging. The solver consists of three parts, including the phase space distribution estimator, the effective source constructor and the detector signal extractor. Instead of the tedious Monte Carlo solution, the derived Boltzmann equation solver achieves ultrafast computational capability for scatter signal estimation by combining direct analytical derivation and time-efficient one-dimensional numerical integration over the trajectory along each momentum of the photon phase space distribution.

Prediction of SBRT response in liver cancer by combining original and delta cone-beam CT radiomics: a pilot study.

This study aims to explore the feasibility of utilizing a combination of original and delta cone-beam CT (CBCT) radiomics for predicting treatment response in liver tumors undergoing stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). A total of 49 patients are included in this study, with 36 receiving 5-fraction SBRT, 3 receiving 4-fraction SBRT, and 10 receiving 3-fraction SBRT. The CBCT and planning CT images from liver cancer patients who underwent SBRT are collected to extract overall 547 radiomics features.

miR-218-5p and miR-320a-5p as Biomarkers for Brain Disorders: Focus on the Major Depressive Disorder and Parkinson's Disease.

Depression is one of the early and most persistent non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD), which remains ignored, resulting in the underdiagnosis of PD. Unfortunately, scarce studies and the non-availability of diagnostic strategies cause countless complications, highlighting the need for appropriate diagnostic biomarkers. Recently, brain-enriched miRNAs regulating vital neurological functions have been proposed as potent biomarkers for therapeutic strategies.

Intravenous Thrombolysis or Medical Management for Minor Strokes.

Objective:  To evaluate the outcomes of acute ischemic stroke patients with minor deficits treated with either intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) or routine medical management (MM).

Methods:  The study included patients with acute ischemic stroke and National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores of 5 or less who were treated with IVT within 4.5 hours from symptom onset and were classified as the IVT group.

Risk factors for early neurologic deterioration in single small subcortical infarction without carrier artery stenosis: predictors at the early stage.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the epidemiological features and explore the potential risk factors for early neurological deterioration (END) in patients with acute single small subcortical infarction (SSSI) who underwent antiplatelet therapy without carotid artery stenosis.

Materials & Methods: Patients with SSSI, as confirmed by cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), who were hospitalized within 48 h after the onset of symptoms were enrolled. END was mainly defined as increment in the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score of ≥ 2 points or any new neurological deficit.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on hospitalizations for cerebrovascular disease and related in-hospital mortality in China: A nationwide observational study.

Background And Purpose: The aim of this nationwide study was to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cerebrovascular disease hospitalization rates, out-of-pocket rates, and in-hospital case fatality rates.

Methods: All hospitalizations for cerebrovascular disease from 1599 hospitals from 2019 to 2020 were selected using the International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision, in the Hospital Quality Monitoring System (HQMS). We defined 2019 as the pre-pandemic group and 2020 as the post-pandemic group.

Endovascular thrombectomy or bridging therapy in minor ischemic stroke with large vessel occlusion.

Background: Whether direct endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) is non-inferior to bridging therapy (intravenous thrombolysis [IVT] followed by EVT) in minor acute ischemic stroke due to large vessel occlusions (AIS-LVO) is not clear. Therefore, this study aimed to assess whether direct EVT is non-inferior to bridging therapy in minor AIS-LVO.

Methods: 903 patients with acute ischemic stroke due to large vessel occlusion and National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score <6 receiving EVT treatment were enrolled at Bigdata Observatory Platform for Stroke of China in China from January 1, 2019, to December 31, 2020, with final follow-up on March 31, 2021.

Multi-view learning for lymph node metastasis prediction using tumor and nodal radiomics in gastric cancer.

This study aims to develop and validate a multi-view learning method by the combination of primary tumor radiomics and lymph node (LN) radiomics for the preoperative prediction of LN status in gastric cancer (GC).A total of 170 contrast-enhanced abdominal CT images from GC patients were enrolled in this retrospective study. After data preprocessing, two-step feature selection approach including Pearson correlation analysis and supervised feature selection method based on test-time budget (FSBudget) was performed to remove redundance of tumor and LN radiomics features respectively.

The association between restless leg syndrome and anxiety in Parkinson's disease: a case-control study.

Objective: To shed light on the association between restless leg syndrome (RLS) and anxiety in Parkinson's disease (PD) population.

Methods: This was a case-control study including 129 PD participants with and without anxiety who presented to the Aerospace Center Hospital in Beijing, China. Anxiety was evaluated by using the Beck Anxiety Index score.

Pharmacological Modulation of Nrf2/HO-1 Signaling Pathway as a Therapeutic Target of Parkinson's Disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a complex neurodegenerative disorder featuring both motor and nonmotor symptoms associated with a progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. Oxidative stress (OS) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of PD. Genetic and environmental factors can produce OS, which has been implicated as a core contributor to the initiation and progression of PD through the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons.

Early changes to the extracellular space in the hippocampus under simulated microgravity conditions.

The smooth transportation of substances through the brain extracellular space (ECS) is crucial to maintaining brain function; however, the way this occurs under simulated microgravity remains unclear. In this study, tracer-based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and D-mapping techniques were used to image the drainage of brain interstitial fluid (ISF) from the ECS of the hippocampus in a tail-suspended hindlimb-unloading rat model at day 3 (HU-3) and 7 (HU-7). The results indicated that drainage of the ISF was accelerated in the HU-3 group but slowed markedly in the HU-7 group.

Effects of Health Qigong Exercises on Physical Function on Patients with Parkinson's Disease.

Purpose: To measure motor function improvements in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) using Health Qigong exercises.

Patients And Methods: Fifty-two PD patients (Hoehn and Yahr stages I to IV) were randomly divided into experimental and control groups. Twenty-six PD patients in the experimental group were intervened with routine medicine and fitness Qigong exercise.

Anti-α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptor encephalitis: A case report.

Introduction: : Anti-α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptor (AMPAR) is a subtype of glutamate receptor that mediates most of the fast excitatory neurotransmission in the brain. Anti-AMPAR encephalitis is an autoimmune-mediated neurological disorder, frequently accompanied by the presence of neoplasms, comprising a spectrum of paraneoplastic syndrome.

Patient Concerns: A 56-year-old man was admitted for deterioration in memory and aberrant psychological behaviors, which lasted for at least 20 days.

Alterations in Cerebral Hemodynamics During Microgravity: A Literature Review.

Most reported neurological symptoms that happen after exposure to microgravity could be originated from alterations in cerebral hemodynamics. The complicated mechanisms involved in the process of hemodynamics and the disparate experimental protocols designed to study the process may have contributed to the discrepancies in results between studies and the lack of consensus among researchers. This literature review examines spaceflight and ground-based studies of cerebral hemodynamics and aims to summarize the underlying physiological mechanisms that are altered in cerebral hemodynamics during microgravity.