Sustained neuronal DNA damage and PARP activation lead to VEGFA-mediated blood-brain barrier disruption in radiation-induced brain injury.

Cranial radiotherapy is commonly used for treatment of patients with head and neck tumors, yet a considerable number of patients encounter long-lasting medical complications, including compromised blood-brain barrier (BBB) function and cognitive impairment. The mechanisms underlying BBB leakage after radiation exposure and potential preventive strategies remain elusive. In this study, we reported persistent accumulation of unrepaired DNA damage and PARP hyperactivation in neurons of both patients with radiation-induced brain injury and a mouse model.

Neddylation E1 Obligatory Subunit Nae1 Is Critical to Neuromuscular Junction Development and Maintenance.

Rapsyn is a scaffold protein that is thought to anchor acetylcholine receptors at the neuromuscular junction (NMJ). We showed that it may be an E3 ligase that regulates NMJ development by neddylation. To obtain genetical evidence, we mutated Nae1 (APP-BP1), an obligatory subunit of the neddylation E1 enzyme specifically in muscle cells.

Rapid and simple detection of anilinopyrimidine resistance in by combining recombinase polymerase amplification with the CRISPR/Cas12a assay.

Anilinopyrimidine (AP) fungicides have been widely adopted to control Botrytis cinerea since the 1990s. As a high-risk pathogen for the development of fungicide resistance, B. cinerea developed resistance to AP fungicides soon after their application.

Advancements in delivery strategies and non-tissue culture regeneration systems for plant genetic transformation.

Plant genetic transformation is a pivotal and essential step in modifying important agronomic traits using biotechnological tools, which primarily depend on the efficacy of transgene delivery and the plant regeneration system. Over the years, advancements in the development of delivery methods and regeneration systems have contributed to plant engineering and molecular breeding. Recent studies have demonstrated that the efficiency of plant transformation can be improved by simultaneously delivering meristem-developmental regulators, utilizing virus-mediated gene editing, and executing non-sterile in planta manipulations.

Depression and risk of arthritis: A Mendelian randomization study.

Introduction: Observational studies have found that most patients with arthritis have depression. We aimed to determine the causal relationship between various types of arthritis and depression.

Methods: We conducted a two-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomized (MR) analysis to determine whether there was a significant causal relationship between depression and multiple types of arthritis.

Enhancing diagnostic performance and image quality in coronary CT angiography: Impact of SnapShot Freeze 2 algorithm across varied heart rates in stent patients.

Purpose: To investigate the enhancement of image quality achieved through the utilization of SnapShot Freeze 2 (SSF2), a comparison was made against the results obtained from the original SnapShot Freeze algorithm (SSF) and standard motion correction (STND) in stent patients undergoing coronary CT angiography (CCTA) across the entire range of heart rates.

Materials And Methods: A total of 118 patients who underwent CCTA, were retrospectively included in this study. Images of these patients were reconstructed using three different algorithms: SSF2, SSF, and STND.

Assessment of chemotherapy resistance changes in human colorectal cancer xenografts in rats based on MRI histogram features.

Purpose: We investigated the value of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) histogram features, a non-invasive method, in assessing the changes in chemoresistance of colorectal cancer xenografts in rats.

Methods: A total of 50 tumor-bearing mice with colorectal cancer were randomly divided into two groups: control group and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) group. The MRI histogram characteristics and the expression levels of p53 protein and MRP1 were obtained at 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, 120 h, and 168 h after treatment.

A simple and efficient in planta transformation method based on the active regeneration capacity of plants.

Plant genetic transformation strategies serve as essential tools for the genetic engineering and advanced molecular breeding of plants. However, the complicated operational protocols and low efficiency of current transformation strategies restrict the genetic modification of most plant species. This paper describes the development of the regenerative activity-dependent in planta injection delivery (RAPID) method based on the active regeneration capacity of plants.

Mitochondrial Inner Membrane ABC Transporter Bcmdl1 Is Involved in Conidial Germination, Virulence, and Resistance to Anilinopyrimidine Fungicides in Botrytis cinerea.

Botrytis cinerea causes gray mold on thousands of plants, leading to huge losses in production. Anilinopyrimidine (AP) fungicides have been applied to control B. cinerea since the 1990s.

APP in the Neuromuscular Junction for the Development of Sarcopenia and Alzheimer's Disease.

Sarcopenia, an illness condition usually characterized by a loss of skeletal muscle mass and muscle strength or function, is often associated with neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), a common type of dementia, leading to memory loss and other cognitive impairment. However, the underlying mechanisms for their associations and relationships are less well understood. The , a Mendelian gene for early-onset AD, encodes amyloid precursor protein (APP), a transmembrane protein enriched at both the neuromuscular junction (NMJ) and synapses in the central nervous system (CNS).

Pregabalin mitigates microglial activation and neuronal injury by inhibiting HMGB1 signaling pathway in radiation-induced brain injury.

Background: Radiation-induced brain injury (RIBI) is the most serious complication of radiotherapy in patients with head and neck tumors, which seriously affects the quality of life. Currently, there is no effective treatment for patients with RIBI, and identifying new treatment that targets the pathological mechanisms of RIBI is urgently needed.

Methods: Immunofluorescence staining, western blotting, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR), co-culture of primary neurons and microglia, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) assay, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and CRISPR-Cas9-mediated gene editing techniques were employed to investigate the protective effects and underlying mechanisms of pregabalin that ameliorate microglial activation and neuronal injury in the RIBI mouse model.

Cranial irradiation impairs intrinsic excitability and synaptic plasticity of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons with implications for cognitive function.

Radiation therapy is a standard treatment for head and neck tumors. However, patients often exhibit cognitive impairments following radiation therapy. Previous studies have revealed that hippocampal dysfunction, specifically abnormal hippocampal neurogenesis or neuroinflammation, plays a key role in radiation-induced cognitive impairment.

Evaluation of the Degree of Agreement of Four Methods for Diagnosing Diabetic Autonomic Neuropathy.

There are many methods to diagnose diabetic autonomic neuropathy (DAN); however, often, the various methods do not provide consistent results. Even the two methods recommended by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) guidelines, Ewing's test and heart rate variability (HRV), sometimes give conflicting results. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the degree of agreement of the results of the Composite Autonomic Symptom Score 31 (COMPASS-31), skin sympathetic reaction (SSR) test, Ewing's test, and HRV in diagnosing DAN.

Gamma ray-induced glial activation and neuronal loss occur before the delayed onset of brain necrosis.

Radiotherapy is one of the most effective treatments for head and neck tumors. However, delayed radiation-induced brain necrosis (RN) remains a serious issue due to the lack of satisfying prevention and effective treatment. The pathological role of radiation in the delayed onset of brain necrosis is still largely unknown, and the traditional animal model of whole brain irradiation, although being widely used, does not produce reliable and localized brain necrosis mimicking clinical features of RN.

A discrete serotonergic circuit regulates vulnerability to social stress.

Exposure to social stress and dysregulated serotonergic neurotransmission have both been implicated in the etiology of psychiatric disorders. However, the serotonergic circuit involved in stress vulnerability is still unknown. Here, we explored whether a serotonergic input from the dorsal raphe (DR) to ventral tegmental area (VTA) influences vulnerability to social stress.

Identification of potential metabolite markers for colon cancer and rectal cancer using serum metabolomics.

Background: To determine the metabolic characteristics of patients with colon cancer (CC) and rectal cancer (RC) using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)-based metabolomics.

Methods: In this study, serum samples were collected from 22 CC patients and 23 RC patients preoperatively and postoperatively and 45 healthy volunteers (HVs), and subjected to metabolomics analysis by GC-MS. Differential metabolites in the preoperative RC and CC samples and HVs were identified as potential biomarkers and evaluated for their utilities by receiver operating characteristic analyses.

Developing normal number of small segments-activity clouds of the electromyography interference pattern.

Background: Number of small segments (NSS) and activity analysis is a mature method for electromyographic automatic interference pattern analysis (IPA), but there are few reports on the application of this technique. Our objective was to establish normal reference values of NSS-activity clouds.

Methods: The NSS and activity data of the sternocleidomastoid, deltoid, biceps brachii (long head), extensor digitorum communis, abductor digiti minimi, vastus medialis, tibialis anterior, and gastrocnemius (lateral head) muscles were obtained from 34 men and 25 women, aged 15-80 years, using concentric needle electrodes.

Serum Cystatin C Predicts Mortality in HBV-Related Decompensated Cirrhosis.

Background: Some studies have reported that renal dysfunction is associated with poor prognosis in cirrhotic patients. Serum cystatin C (CysC) is an accurate biomarker for early renal dysfunction. This study aimed to assess the prognostic value of serum CysC levels in patients with hepatitis B virus-related decompensated cirrhosis (HBV-DeCi).

Neural Induction Potential and MRI of ADSCs Labeled Cationic Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticle In Vitro.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) combined with contrast agents is believed to be useful for stem cell tracking in vivo, and the aim of this research was to investigate the biosafety and neural induction of SD rat-originated adipose derived stem cells (ADSCs) using cationic superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticle which was synthesized by the improved polyol method, in order to allow visualization using in vitro MRI. The scan protocols were performed with T2-mapping sequence; meanwhile, the ultrastructure of labeled cells was observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) while the iron content was measured by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES). After neural induction, nestin and NSE (neural markers) were obviously expressed.

Synergistic anticancer effect of exogenous wild-type p53 gene combined with 5-FU in human colon cancer resistant to 5-FU in vivo.

Aim: To investigate the anticancer effect of a recombinant adenovirus-mediated p53 (rAd-p53) combined with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in human colon cancer resistant to 5-FU in vivo and the mechanism of rAd-p53 in reversal of 5-FU resistance.

Methods: Nude mice bearing human colon cancer SW480/5-FU (5-FU resistant) were randomly assigned to four groups (n = 25 each): control group, 5-FU group, rAd-p53 group, and rAd-p53 + 5-FU group. At 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, 120 h and 168 h after treatment, 5 mice were randomly selected from each group and sacrificed using an overdose of anesthetics.

[Knowledge and practice on schistosomiasis control of boatmen along Yangtze River].

Objective: To understand the knowledge and practice on schistosomiasis control of boatmen along the Yangtze River, so as to provide the evidence for making up schistosomiasis control measures for them.

Methods: In the anchor spots along the Yangtze River in Xinbei District, Changzhou City, a questionnaire survey was carried out for boatmen's knowledge and practice on schistosomiasis control. Among the boatmen of different genders, ages and education levels, the awareness rates of schistosomiasis control knowledge and the formation rates of correct behavior were compared.

Reporter gene assay for detection of shellfish toxins.

Objective: To explore the potential reporter gene assay for the detection of sodium channel-specific toxins in shellfish as an alternative for screening harmful algal bloom (HAB) toxins, considering the fact that the existing methods including HPLC and bioassay are inappropriate for identifying HAB toxins which poses a serious problem on human health and shellfish industry.

Methods: A reporter plasmid pEGFP-c-fos containing c-fos promoter and EGFP was constructed and transfected into T24 cells using LipofectAMINE 2000. Positive transfectants were screened by G418 to produce a pEGFP-c-fos-T24 cell line.