[ ABSTRACT] AIM:To investigate the effects of sinapic acid ( SA) on the proliferation and apoptosis of rat vas-cular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) induced by high glucose (HG).METHODS:Cultured A7r5 cells were randomly di-vided and treated as indicated.The cell viability was determined by MTT assay.DNA synthesis was measured by BrdU as-say.Cell cycle progression and cell apoptotic rate were determined by flow cytometry analysis.The levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) were detected by ELISA.The protein levels of cyclin D1, P21, P27, phosphorylated protein kinase C (p-PKC), p-P38 andβ-actin were evaluated by Western blot.RESULTS:Compared with control group, the viability of A7r5 cells was significantly enhanced, the DNA synthesis was increased, the cell cycle progression was promoted, the levels of ROS were elevated, the cell apoptotic rate was reduced, the protein expression of P21 and P27 was decreased, and the pro-tein levels of cyclin D1, p-PKC and p-P38 were increased in HG group (all P<0.05).These effects were reversed by SA (0.1, 1 and 10 μmol/L) treatment in a dose-dependent manner (all P<0.05).Both P38 inhibitor SB203580 and PKC inhibitor chelerythrine significantly inhibit HG-induced PKC/P38 activation and cell viability ( P <0.05).CONCLU-SION:SA inhibits HG-induced VSMCs proliferation and promotes cell apoptosis via reducing PKC/P38 activation.

Objective:To evaluate the application high-resolution 3.0-T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in diagnosis of ligament and tendon injuries of the forefeet.Methods:From September 2014 to August 2020, 40 patients with forefeet injury (40 forefoot) and 20 healthy subjects (40 forefoot) meeting the including and excluding criteria were enrolled into this retrospective study. All subjects underwent MRI T1-weighted image (T1WI) and fat suppression proton density-weighted imaging (PD-FS) scan on coronal planes, sagittal planes and axial planes, respectively. Then the MRI characteristics of tendons in forefoot of healthy subjects and patients with forefoot injuries were compared. In patients the MR features of ligament and tendons injury were compared with the surgical findings or follow-up results.Results:In 20 normal subjects the tendons and ligament of the forefoot showed homogeneous low-signal-intensity on T1WI and PD-FS images. In the 40 patients with forefoot injuries, 22 cases were confirmed by surgical findings and 18 cases were confirmed by follow-up results. There were 8 cases of collateral ligament injuries, including 2 cases with complete tear, 3 cases with partial tear and 3 cases with sprain; 2 cases of extensor tendon with partial tear; 8 cases of flexor tendon injuries, including 3 cases with complete tear, 3 cases with partial tear and 2 cases with sprain; 3 cases of abductor tendon with partial tear; 13 cases of plantar plate injuries; and 6 cases of Lisfranc ligament injuries including 5 cases with complete tear and 1 case with partial tear. The injured ligament and tendons presented thicker and discontinuity in T1WI; and demonstrated heterogeneously increased signal intensity with edema in the surrounding soft tissues in PD-FS. The partially torn ligament and tendons showed discontinuity and thickening; and the completely torn ligament and tendons showed that they were interrupted and retracted, fiber structure disappeared and was filled with liquid, and edema in the surrounding soft tissue.Conclusion:High resolution magnetic resonance imaging of the forefoot can demonstrate the anatomy and features of ligament and tendon injuries in forefoot accurately, which has clinical application value for the early diagnosis and accurate treatment of the injury.

Objective To investigate the characteristics of cerebral glucose metabolism (CGM) in PD patients with cognitive impairment (PD-CI) using 18F-FDG PET/CT,and to analyze the correlation between the progress of PD-CI and CGM changes.Methods A total of 31 idiopathic PD patients (14 males,17 females,aged 37-77 years) from May 2013 to February 2014 were divided into 3 groups based on Montreal cognitive assessment (MOCA):none CI in PD (PD-NC) group (MOCA＞26 scores),mild CI in PD (PD-MCI) group (MOCA 21-26 scores),PD with dementia (PDD) group (MOCA＜21 scores).The normal controls (NC) group included 12 age-and gender-matched healthy adults (7 males,5 females,aged 40-76 years).All subjects underwent PET/CT imaging after intravenous injection of 18F-FDG(5.55 MBq/kg).MIMneuro software was used to analyze the data.The correlation between the CGM and cognitive function was analyzed using Pearson or Spearman correlation analysis.Results (1) Compared with NC group,PDD group presented a widespread cortical metabolism decrease in frontal,parietal,temporal,occipital 19bes and the limbic lobe;PD-MCI group showed hypometabolic areas in the parietal and occipital lobes,and with less extent in the frontal and temporal lobes;PD-NC group showed no significant cerebral hypometabolism.(2) Compared with PD-NC group,PDD group showed widespread cortical metabolism decrease in occipital lobe,temporal lobe,partial parietal cortex and the posterior cingulated cortex.Compared with PD-MCI group,PDD group had lower metabolism,mainly in posterior brain areas (parietal,occipital and temporal lobes).Compared with PD-NC group,PD-MCI group showed hypometabolism in right supramarginal gyrus and the left parahippocampal gyrus.(3) There were positive correlations between visuospatiaL/executive function and visual cortex metabolism,angular gyrus metabolism or superior parietal lobule metabolism (r =0.535,0.443,0.395;all P＜0.05).A positive correlation was also found between delayed memory and heschl's gyrus metabolism (r=0.337,P＜0.05).Conclusions The cerebral glucose metabolism detected with 18F-FDG PET/CT is well correlated with MOCA assessments.Thus it may be helpful in evaluation of the progress of cognitive impairments in PD.

Objective To understand the quality of life and self-efficacy of Parkinson patients and explore the relationship between them. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted on 155 Parkinson patients. The instruments included a self-designed general information questionnarie, the 39-item Parkinson's disease questionnaire (PDQ-39) and self-efficacy scale for chronic patients. Results The total score of the quality of life was 26.12 ± 16.31.The total score of self-efficacy was 5.46 ± 1.87, and the scores of symptom management and disease management were 5.23 ± 1.98 and 5.94 ± 1.96. The quality of life was positively correlated with self-efficacy (r=0.800, P < 0.01). Conclusions Parkinson patients' overall the quality of life and self-efficacy remain a low level, and the quality of life was closely correlated with self-efficacy. The score of patients' self-efficacy was higer, the quality of life was better. Medical and nursing personnel can through strengthening patients' self-efficacy, optimizating of the patient' s health behavior, and improving negative emotion and attitude, so as to improve their quality of life.

Objective: To study the MRI manifestations of foot injuries in amateur marathoners and the diagnostic value of MRI for foot injuries. Methods: Forty-eight amateur marathoners were prospectively recruited from October 2018 to March 2019. Participants were grouped according to the FASS criteria. All participants underwent bilateral foot MRI examinations. The MRI features of foot in amateur marathoners with and without foot pain were analyzed.The association with gender, age, time to participate in marathon, amount of running per week, number of times to complete the whole marathon and the symptoms of foot pain was studied. Results: There were 28 sides in FASS in grade 0, including 8 males and 20 females, 8 hydrocele of the first metatarsophalangeal joint, 6 edema of bone marrow, 4 edema of soft tissue, 4 hydrocele of tendon sheath, and 6 without abnormal manifestations of MRI. There were 68 sides in FASS grade 1, including 42 males and 26 females, 38 Achilles tendinitis, 14 plantar fasciitis, 12 Achilles tendon bursitis and 4 posterior ankle impingement syndrome. The incidence of foot pain in amateur marathoners was related to gender (OR=1.060, P=0.043), unrelated to age (OR=0.248, P=0.078), number of marathons completed (OR=1.006, P=0.956), time to participate in marathon (OR=1.008, P=0.944), amount of running per week (OR=0.971, P=0.407). Conclusion Among amateur marathon runners, the foot pain is mainly caused by Achilles tendon and plantar fascia, while those without foot pain are mainly characterized by joint effusion, tendon sheath effusion and bone marrow edema. Gender is the only factor affecting the incidence of foot pain in amateur marathoners. MRI examination is an effective method to determine foot injury and has important clinical application value in the diagnosis and treatment of foot injury.

Parkinson disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disease with motor and non-motor symptoms that seriously affect the quality of life and social function of patients. The current non-invasive techniques in PD brain function studies mainly include functional magnetic resonance imaging and electroencephalography, which made it difficult to assess brain function under motor state or magnetoelectric treatment. As an emerging functional neuroimaging technique, functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) can monitor the real movement-related cortical responses of PD patients in real time, providing a safe and non-invasive method with high ecological validity for direct monitoring of brain activity. This article presented a review of recent advances in the application of fNIRS technology in PD research, intending to provide new ideas for functional neuroimaging studies in PD. The results suggested that PD gait and balance deficits were closely associated with abnormal activation of the cerebral cortex, particularly the prefrontal cortex, involving a compensatory strategy of cortical cognitive resources for basal ganglia dysfunction. Drugs, deep brain stimulation, and other interventions could be applied to fNIRS techniques to evaluate neurorehabilitation effects and reveal the neural basis of intervention effects. This area of research is currently in its infancy, but the evidence provided supports for the translation of fNIRS into clinical practice. Future research should develop multimodal imaging techniques and in-depth studies of broad areas of the cerebral cortex to obtain more valuable findings for clinical practice.

Objective To investigate the current status of hardiness and quality of life (QoL) among patients with Parkinson disease (PD) and analyze the correlation between hardiness and QoL.Methods By convenience sampling,243 patients with PD were recruited from a tertiary hospital in Dalian during February 2017 and May 2017.General Scale,Hardiness Scale for Chinese Adults and Parkinson disease Questionnaire-39 item Version (PDQ39) were employed to measure hardiness and QoL among patients with PD.Results The hardiness score was (1.96±0.66) and the PDQ39 score was (35.46±20.38).The hardiness score was negatively correlated with PDQ39 score (r=-0.434,P＜0.01).Conclusion Patients with PD have a low level of hardiness and QoL.The higher the level of hardiness,the better the QoL.

Objective To study the MRI manifestations of foot injuries in amateur marathoners and the diagnostic value of MRI for foot injuries. Methods Forty?eight amateur marathoners were prospectively recruited from October 2018 to March 2019. Participants were grouped according to the FASS criteria. All participants underwent bilateral foot MRI examinations. The MRI features of foot in amateur marathoners with and without foot pain were analyzed.The association with gender, age, time to participate in marathon, amount of running per week, number of times to complete the whole marathon and the symptoms of foot pain was studied. Results There were 28 sides in FASS in grade 0, including 8 males and 20 females, 8 hydrocele of the first metatarsophalangeal joint, 6 edema of bone marrow, 4 edema of soft tissue, 4 hydrocele of tendon sheath, and 6 without abnormal manifestations of MRI. There were 68 sides in FASS grade 1, including 42 males and 26 females, 38 Achilles tendinitis, 14 plantar fasciitis, 12 Achilles tendon bursitis and 4 posterior ankle impingement syndrome. The incidence of foot pain in amateur marathoners was related to gender(OR=1.060, P=0.043), unrelated to age(OR=0.248, P=0.078), number of marathons completed(OR=1.006, P=0.956), time to participate in marathon(OR=1.008,P=0.944), amount of running per week (OR=0.971,P=0.407). Conclusion Among amateur marathon runners, the foot pain is mainly caused by Achilles tendon and plantar fascia, while those without foot pain are mainly characterized by joint effusion, tendon sheath effusion and bone marrow edema. Gender is the only factor affecting the incidence of foot pain in amateur marathoners. MRI examination is an effective method to determine foot injury and has important clinical application value in the diagnosis and treatment of foot injury.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between mental resilience and quality of life in patients with Parkinson ′s disease and provide basis for paying attention to the mental health of this group. Methods:A total of 190 in patients with Parkinson ′s disease (PD) were selected from April to July 2017 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University. The general data questionnaire, Mental Resilience Scale and 39-Item Quality of Life (QOL) Questionnaires were used to investigate among the patients. Results:The mental resilience score of PD patients was 48.0 (29.8, 62.2) points and the quality of life score was 56.0 (27.8, 82.0) points. There was a significant negative correlation between mental resilience and quality of life score ( r value was -0.538, P<0.01). Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that with the increase of psychological elasticity score, the score of quality of life decreased ( b value was -0.002, P<0.001). Conclusions:The mental resilience and quality of life of PD patients are both at a low level, the improvement of mental resilience is beneficial to improve their quality of life.

BACKGROUND:Mechanical stimulation has been confirmed to promote osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow stromal stem cells,but the mechanism is unknown.Primary cilia are important mechanoreceptors and regulate various signaling pathways such as TGF-β1/BMP-2/SMAD.They are likely to be important targets for mechanical regulation of bone marrow stromal stem cells. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effect and mechanism of fluid shear stress on osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow stromal stem cells. METHODS:Rat bone marrow stromal stem cells were divided into control group,mechanical stimulation group(fluid shear mechanics intervention by shaking table),mechanical stimulation + IFT88 silencing group(mechanical stimulation + silencing IFT88 expression with siRNA).After 24 hours of intervention,qRT-PCR was utilized to determine the expression of transforming growth factor β1 and bone morphogenetic protein 2.Western blot assay was used to detect the expression of phosphorylated SMAD2/3 protein.Immunofluorescent staining of primary cilia was conducted and morphology was analyzed. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Shear stress stimulation could promote the transcriptional activity of transforming growth factor β1 and bone morphogenetic protein 2 genes,and increase the expression of phosphorylated SMAD2/3 protein.After siRNA interfered with primary cilia,this mechanical response effect was significantly reduced.There was a Spearman correlation between the change ratio of the primary cilium area of bone marrow stromal stem cells and the increased ratio of transforming growth factor β1 and bone morphogenetic protein 2 gene transcription.These findings indicate that primary cilia/intraflagellar transport mediates the activation of fluid shear stress-responsive transforming growth factor β1/bone morphogenetic protein 2/SMAD signaling pathway and promotes osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow stromal stem cells.