Sexual dimorphism in the brain underlies behavioral differences between sexes. The bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) is a complex nucleus that differs between males and females, but the sexual dimorphism in cytoarchitecture and the connectome of its oval subdivision (ovBNST) remains largely unexplored. By combining snRNA-seq and transgenic labeling, we found a higher density of ovBNST proenkephalin (ovBNST^PENK) neurons in male than female mice. Anatomically, we virally mapped the efferents and afferents of ovBNST^PENK neurons, finding reciprocally dimorphic connections with the hypothalamus and striatum. Gene enrichment analysis suggests that ovBNST^PENK neurons are modulated by the upstream dopamine pathway. Functionally, by applying caspase-3-mediated depletion of ovBNST^PENK neurons, we found that loss of these neurons enhanced locomotor activity in male but not female mice, without altering the anxiety-like phenotypes in either sex. Our study may pave the way for a better understanding of the anatomical and functional profiles of ovBNST^PENK neurons from a sexually dimorphic perspective.
Animals ; Male ; Female ; Septal Nuclei/physiology* ; Sex Characteristics ; Neurons/physiology* ; Enkephalins/metabolism* ; Mice ; Mice, Transgenic ; Protein Precursors/metabolism* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Neural Pathways/physiology*

Objective     To explore the association between the preoperative systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) and prognosis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Methods     A comprehensive literature survey was performed on PubMed, Web of Science, EMbase, The Cochrane Library, Wanfang, and CNKI databases to search the related studies from inception to December 2021. The hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were combined to evaluate the correlation of the preoperative SII with overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and recurrence-free survival (RFS) in NSCLC patients. Results     A total of 11 studies involving 9 180 patients were eventually included. The combined analysis showed that high SII levels were significantly associated with worse OS (HR=1.61, 95%CI 1.36-1.90, P<0.001), DFS (HR=1.50, 95%CI 1.34-1.68, P<0.001), and RFS (HR=1.17, 95%CI 1.04-1.33, P<0.001). Subgroup analyses also further verified the above results. Conclusion     Preoperative SII is a powerful prognostic biomarker for predicting outcome in patients with operable NSCLC and contribute to prognosis evaluation and treatment strategy formulation. However, more well-designed and prospective studies are warranted to verify our findings.

Objective:To propose a model using the maximum intensity projection (MIP) of lung field computed tomography (CT) images and deep convolution neural network (CNN) and explore its value in identifying chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).Methods:A total of 201 subjects were selected from the Second Hospital of Dalian Medical University from January 2010 to May 2021. All subjects were included according to the inclusion criteria and were divided into COPD group (101 cases) and healthy controls group (100 cases). Each patient underwent a high-resolution CT scan of the chest and pulmonary function test. First, the lung field was extracted from CT images and the intrapulmonary MIP images were acquired. Second, with these MIP images as input, the model for identifying COPD was constructed based on a modified residual network (ResNet). Finally, the influence of the number of residual blocks on the performance of the models was investigated. Accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and area under the curve (AUC) were used to evaluate the identification efficiency.Results:The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) of ResNet26 was 76.1%, 76.2%, 76.0%, 76.2%, and 76.0%, respectively; and the AUC of the test was 0.855 (95% CI: 0.799-0.901). The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV of ResNet50 was 77.6%, 76.2%, 79.0%, 78.6%, and 76.7%, respectively; and the AUC of the test was 0.854 (95% CI: 0.797-0.900). The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV of ResNet26d was 82.1%, 83.2%, 81.0%, 81.6%, and 82.7%, respectively; and the AUC of the test was 0.885 (95% CI: 0.830-0.926). Conclusions:The COPD identification model via MIP images from CT images within the lung and deep CNN is successfully constructed and achieves accurate COPD identification. And it can provide an effective tool for COPD screening.

Objective:To investigate the effects of minimally invasive aspiration and drainage combined with hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy on inflammatory factors and cerebrovascular dynamic indicators in patients with hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage.Methods:A total of 74 patients with hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage treated in 454 Hospital and Nanjing Zijin Hospital from January 2019 to January 2021 were selected and randomly divided into treatment group ( n=37) given minimally invasive aspiration and drainage combined with HBO therapy and control group ( n=37) given minimally invasive aspiration and drainage only. The levels of serum inflammatory factors, cerebrovascular dynamic indicators, arterial blood gas (ABG) levels, and the neurologic function scores in the two groups before and after treatment were compared. Results:Before treatment, there was no significant difference between the two groups in the levels of serum inflammatory factors, cerebrovascular dynamic indicators, ABG levels, and the neurological function scores ( P>0.05); after 30 days of treatment, the levels of inflammatory factors such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1(IL-1), and IL-8 in the treatment group were lower than those in the control group, the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores, the values of peripheral resistance (PR) and dynamic resistance (DR) in the treatment group were lower than those in the control group, while the Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) scores, the mean blood flow velocities (Vm), mean blood flow quantities (Qm), the arterial partial pressures of CO 2 (PaCO 2) and the arterial partial pressures of oxygen (PaO 2), and the blood pH values in the treatment group were higher than those in the control group ( P<0.05), and all the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Minimally invasive aspiration and drainage combined with HBO therapy in the treatment of hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage can effectively reduce the patients’ inflammatory response and promote the recovery of cerebral vascular dynamics and nerve function.

Objective:To investigate the effects of minimally invasive aspiration and drainage combined with hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy on inflammatory factors and cerebrovascular dynamic indicators in patients with hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage.Methods:A total of 74 patients with hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage treated in 454 Hospital and Nanjing Zijin Hospital from January 2019 to January 2021 were selected and randomly divided into treatment group ( n=37) given minimally invasive aspiration and drainage combined with HBO therapy and control group ( n=37) given minimally invasive aspiration and drainage only. The levels of serum inflammatory factors, cerebrovascular dynamic indicators, arterial blood gas (ABG) levels, and the neurologic function scores in the two groups before and after treatment were compared. Results:Before treatment, there was no significant difference between the two groups in the levels of serum inflammatory factors, cerebrovascular dynamic indicators, ABG levels, and the neurological function scores ( P>0.05); after 30 days of treatment, the levels of inflammatory factors such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1(IL-1), and IL-8 in the treatment group were lower than those in the control group, the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores, the values of peripheral resistance (PR) and dynamic resistance (DR) in the treatment group were lower than those in the control group, while the Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) scores, the mean blood flow velocities (Vm), mean blood flow quantities (Qm), the arterial partial pressures of CO 2 (PaCO 2) and the arterial partial pressures of oxygen (PaO 2), and the blood pH values in the treatment group were higher than those in the control group ( P<0.05), and all the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Minimally invasive aspiration and drainage combined with HBO therapy in the treatment of hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage can effectively reduce the patients’ inflammatory response and promote the recovery of cerebral vascular dynamics and nerve function.

Objective Effect of hawthorn and melanoidins on the in-vitro growth of Bifidobacterium and E.coli. Methods According to methods of the Chinese pharmacopoeia (2015),the charred hawthorn was prepared. The melanoidins in charred hawthorn were separated and purified by the macroporous resin extraction process. Ultraviolet spectrophotometry was used to detect melanoidins. The gas chromatography was used to detect the effects of hawthorn, charred hawthorn and melanoidins on the content of the acetic acid in Bifidobacterium and E.coli during growth, stable and decay period. Results In the early stage, the effects of hawthorn and charred hawthorn on bacteria were greater than melanoidins. In the middle and late stage, melanoidins inhibited the growth and metabolism of E.coli by changing the generation of acetic acid, and contributed to that of Bifidobacterium and also promoted the generation of acetic acid and regulate the intestinal flora. Conclusion Hawthorn, charred hawthorn and melanoidins all promote digestion by promoting the growth and metabolism of intestinal flora. Among them, charred hawthorn has a better effect on intestinal flora.

Objective To investigate the clinical application of the 2011 edition of China Nanjing Persistent Vegetative State (NPVSS 2011).Methods Three hundred and one patients with vegetative state (VS),persistent vegetative state (PVS) and minimally conscious state (MCS) admitted into hospital from February 22,2011 to May 30,2014 were chosen for the study.Patient conditions and treatment efficacy were assessed by using the NPVSS 2011.Results With regard to conscious state at admission into hospital,109 cases were in VS,65 were in PVS and 127 were in MCS.When discharged from hospital,there were 8 VS cases,72 PVS cases,91 MCS cases,and 130 Ⅲ cases that could carry out more complicated instructions.Of all the cases,164 cases had prominent efficacy,31 were improved,106 were invalid,and 130 cases that had consciousness recovery to the state of Ⅲ.Conclusions The CNPVSS could reflect the changing processes of patient conditions,having the features of being simple and clear,conforming to clinical practice,and above all being easy to master and operate.With this reason,it could be applied to clinical practice.

Objective To investigate the clinical application of the 2011 edition of China Nanjing Persistent Vegetative State (NPVSS 2011).Methods Three hundred and one patients with vegetative state (VS),persistent vegetative state (PVS) and minimally conscious state (MCS) admitted into hospital from February 22,2011 to May 30,2014 were chosen for the study.Patient conditions and treatment efficacy were assessed by using the NPVSS 2011.Results With regard to conscious state at admission into hospital,109 cases were in VS,65 were in PVS and 127 were in MCS.When discharged from hospital,there were 8 VS cases,72 PVS cases,91 MCS cases,and 130 Ⅲ cases that could carry out more complicated instructions.Of all the cases,164 cases had prominent efficacy,31 were improved,106 were invalid,and 130 cases that had consciousness recovery to the state of Ⅲ.Conclusions The CNPVSS could reflect the changing processes of patient conditions,having the features of being simple and clear,conforming to clinical practice,and above all being easy to master and operate.With this reason,it could be applied to clinical practice.

Objective To understand the phenotype and enzyme genotype of pan‐drug resistant carbapenemase‐producing Acine‐tobacter baumannii to provide the evidence for clinical rational use of antibiotics and monitoring hospital infection .Methods A total of 117 clinically isolated strains of Acinetobacter baumannii were collected and performed the routine microbiological detection . Multi‐drug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii was screened by K‐B disk diffusion method .The phenotype of carbapenemase‐produ‐cing strains was detected by using the Carba NP colorimetry and modified Hodge test .The drug resistant genotype of multi‐drug re‐sistant Acinetobacter baumannii was verified by PCR .Results Among clinically isolated 117 strains of Acinetobacter baumannii ,64 strains were multi‐drug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii ,in which 33 strains were carbapenemase positive .OXA‐23 drug‐resistant genotype of carbapenemase was detected by PCR ,while IMP ,VIM and NDM‐1 drug resistant genes were not detected .Conclusion The CarbaNP method can rapidly detect carbapenemase‐producing strains with the advantages of strong sensitivity and simple oper‐ation ,which conduces to improve the detection rate of carbapenemase‐producing strains and monitor the nosocomial infection .