Brain’s neural activities encompass both periodic rhythmic oscillations and aperiodic neural fluctuations. Rhythmic oscillations manifest as spectral peaks of neural signals, directly reflecting the synchronized activities of neural populations and closely tied to cognitive and behavioral states. In contrast, aperiodic fluctuations exhibit a power-law decaying spectral trend, revealing the multiscale dynamics of brain neural activity. In recent years, researchers have made notable progress in studying brain aperiodic dynamics. These studies demonstrate that aperiodic activity holds significant physiological relevance, correlating with various physiological states such as external stimuli, drug induction, sleep states, and aging. Aperiodic activity serves as a reflection of the brain’s sensory capacity, consciousness level, and cognitive ability. In clinical research, the aperiodic exponent has emerged as a significant potential biomarker, capable of reflecting the progression and trends of brain diseases while being intricately intertwined with the excitation-inhibition balance of neural system. The physiological mechanisms underlying aperiodic dynamics span multiple neural scales, with activities at the levels of individual neurons, neuronal ensembles, and neural networks collectively influencing the frequency, oscillatory patterns, and spatiotemporal characteristics of aperiodic signals. Aperiodic dynamics currently boasts broad application prospects. It not only provides a novel perspective for investigating brain neural dynamics but also holds immense potential as a neural marker in neuromodulation or brain-computer interface technologies. This paper summarizes methods for extracting characteristic parameters of aperiodic activity, analyzes its physiological relevance and potential as a biomarker in brain diseases, summarizes its physiological mechanisms, and based on these findings, elaborates on the research prospects of aperiodic dynamics.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is an increasingly widespread sleep-breathing disordered disease, and is an independent risk factor for many high-risk chronic diseases such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, stroke, arrhythmias and diabetes, which is potentially fatal. The key to the prevention and treatment of OSA is early diagnosis and treatment, so the assessment and diagnostic technologies of OSA have become a research hotspot. This paper reviews the research progresses of severity assessment parameters and diagnostic technologies of OSA, and discusses their future development trends. In terms of severity assessment parameters of OSA, apnea hypopnea index (AHI), as the gold standard, together with the percentage of duration of apnea hypopnea (AH%), lowest oxygen saturation (LSpO₂), heart rate variability (HRV), oxygen desaturation index (ODI) and the emerging biomarkers, constitute a multi-dimensional evaluation system. Specifically, the AHI, which measures the frequency of sleep respiratory events per hour, does not fully reflect the patients’ overall sleep quality or the extent of their daytime functional impairments. To address this limitation, the AH%, which measures the proportion of the entire sleep cycle affected by apneas and hypopneas, deepens our understanding of the impact on sleep quality. The LSpO₂ plays a critical role in highlighting the potential severe hypoxic episodes during sleep, while the HRV offers a different perspective by analyzing the fluctuations in heart rate thereby revealing the activity of the autonomic nervous system. The ODI provides a direct and objective measure of patients’ nocturnal oxygenation stability by calculating the number of desaturation events per hour, and the biomarkers offers novel insights into the diagnosis and management of OSA, and fosters the development of more precise and tailored OSA therapeutic strategies. In terms of diagnostic techniques of OSA, the standardized questionnaire and Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS) is a simple and effective method for preliminary screening of OSA, and the polysomnography (PSG) which is based on recording multiple physiological signals stands for gold standard, but it has limitations of complex operations, high costs and inconvenience. As a convenient alternative, the home sleep apnea testing (HSAT) allows patients to monitor their sleep with simplified equipment in the comfort of their own homes, and the cardiopulmonary coupling (CPC) offers a minimal version that simply analyzes the electrocardiogram (ECG) signals. As an emerging diagnostic technology of OSA, machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) adeptly pinpoint respiratory incidents and expose delicate physiological changes, thus casting new light on the diagnostic approach to OSA. In addition, imaging examination utilizes detailed visual representations of the airway’s structure and assists in recognizing structural abnormalities that may result in obstructed airways, while sound monitoring technology records and analyzes snoring and breathing sounds to detect the condition subtly, and thus further expands our medical diagnostic toolkit. As for the future development directions, it can be predicted that interdisciplinary integrated researches, the construction of personalized diagnosis and treatment models, and the popularization of high-tech in clinical applications will become the development trends in the field of OSA evaluation and diagnosis.

Objective:To clarify the causal relationship between obesity and male infertility through Mendelian randomization(MR)study.Methods:We assessed the causal effect of genetically predicted body mass index(BMI)on the risk of male infertility via a two-sample MR analysis,with the BMIs of 99 998 cases and 12 746 controls as the exposure factor and genetic information on male infertility obtained from a genome-wide association study of 73 479 Europeans.In the univariable MR(UVMR)analysis of the causal relationship,we mainly used inverse variance weighting(IVW),with MR-Egger regression and weighted median filtering as the supplementary methods.Sensitivity analyses including the Cochran's Q test,Egger intercept test,MR-PRESSO,leave-one-out analysis and funnel plot were performed to verify the robustness of the MR results.To evaluate the direct causal effects of BMI on MI risk,mult-ivariable MR(MVMR)was performed.Results:UVMR indicated a causal relationship between genetically predicted BMI and an in-creased risk of male infertility(OR:1.237,95%CI:1.090-1.404,P=0.001).Sensitivity analysis revealed little evidence of bias in the current study(P>0.05).With such risk factors as type 2 diabetes,alcohol consumption and smoking adjusted,MVMR confirmed a direct causal effect of genetically predicted BMI on the risk of male infertility(P<0.05).Conclusion:Genetically pre-dicted BMI may be associated with an increased risk of male infertility.Further studies are expected to explore the underlying mecha-nisms of this association and provide some new strategies for the prevention and treatment of BMI-related male infertility.

Objective:To study the mechanism of icariin inhibiting the proliferation of human PCa PC-3 cells based on cell metabolomics technology.Methods:We determined the proliferation activity of human PC-3 cells by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium(MTT)assay,and compared the proliferation of the PC-3 cells among the control,5-fluorouracil and icariin intervention groups.Using the Bligh Dyer method,we extracted endogenous metabolites from the cells,analyzed the metabolic profile by ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography tandem quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry,identified the differential metabolites by principal component anal-ysis and orthogonal partial least-squares discrimination analysis,and enriched the metabolic pathways based on the MetaboAnalyst data-base.Results:Icariin significantly inhibited the proliferation of human PCa PC-3 cells.A total of 89 differential metabolites were i-dentified,mainly including amino acids,phosphatidylcholine,phosphatidylethanolamine,lysophosphatidylcholine,and lysophosphati-dylethanolamine,all with the tendency to return to the normal level after icariin intervention.Icariin significantly downregulated the metabolic levels of the glycerophospholipid metabolites phosphatidylcholine,phosphatidylethanolamine,lysophosphatidylcholine and ly-sophosphatidylethanolamine,and upregulated those of amino acid metabolites tryptophan,leucine,and proline in the PC-3 cells.Conclusion:Icariin inhibits the proliferation of human PCa PC-3 cells,which may be closely related to its regulatory effect on lipid metabolism(glycerophospholipid metabolism)and amino acid metabolism.

Objective To design an emergency medical rescue information system to ensure that emergency medical rescue institutions and teams at all levels can quickly access system support under emergency rescue conditions.Methods The emergency medical rescue information system was built with Browser/Server(B/S)architecture,microservices architecture,Java,JavaScript,Spring Boot,Spring Cloud and Alibaba framework,which used MySQL relational database,Redis cache database and Elasticsearch search engine for data storage and management.There were five functional modules involved in the system including the modules for triage,medical treatment,medical technical support,medical evacuation and command and management.Results The system developed behaved well in rapid deployment and response,and realized quick collection of casualty information and enhanced the efficiency and accuracy of casualty triage.Conclusion The system developed can be used in multi rescue scenarios to meet different requirements,which provides information system support for multi emergency medical rescue institutions and teams.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2024,45(10):41-48]

Objective To investigate the clinical characteristics and prognosis of pneumococcal meningitis(PM),and drug sensitivity of Streptococcus pneumoniae(SP)isolates in Chinese children.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on clinical information,laboratory data,and microbiological data of 160 hospitalized children under 15 years old with PM from January 2019 to December 2020 in 33 tertiary hospitals across the country.Results Among the 160 children with PM,there were 103 males and 57 females.The age ranged from 15 days to 15 years,with 109 cases(68.1% )aged 3 months to under 3 years.SP strains were isolated from 95 cases(59.4% )in cerebrospinal fluid cultures and from 57 cases(35.6% )in blood cultures.The positive rates of SP detection by cerebrospinal fluid metagenomic next-generation sequencing and cerebrospinal fluid SP antigen testing were 40% (35/87)and 27% (21/78),respectively.Fifty-five cases(34.4% )had one or more risk factors for purulent meningitis,113 cases(70.6% )had one or more extra-cranial infectious foci,and 18 cases(11.3% )had underlying diseases.The most common clinical symptoms were fever(147 cases,91.9% ),followed by lethargy(98 cases,61.3% )and vomiting(61 cases,38.1% ).Sixty-nine cases(43.1% )experienced intracranial complications during hospitalization,with subdural effusion and/or empyema being the most common complication[43 cases(26.9% )],followed by hydrocephalus in 24 cases(15.0% ),brain abscess in 23 cases(14.4% ),and cerebral hemorrhage in 8 cases(5.0% ).Subdural effusion and/or empyema and hydrocephalus mainly occurred in children under 1 year old,with rates of 91% (39/43)and 83% (20/24),respectively.SP strains exhibited complete sensitivity to vancomycin(100% ,75/75),linezolid(100% ,56/56),and meropenem(100% ,6/6).High sensitivity rates were also observed for levofloxacin(81% ,22/27),moxifloxacin(82% ,14/17),rifampicin(96% ,25/26),and chloramphenicol(91% ,21/23).However,low sensitivity rates were found for penicillin(16% ,11/68)and clindamycin(6% ,1/17),and SP strains were completely resistant to erythromycin(100% ,31/31).The rates of discharge with cure and improvement were 22.5% (36/160)and 66.2% (106/160),respectively,while 18 cases(11.3% )had adverse outcomes.Conclusions Pediatric PM is more common in children aged 3 months to under 3 years.Intracranial complications are more frequently observed in children under 1 year old.Fever is the most common clinical manifestation of PM,and subdural effusion/emphysema and hydrocephalus are the most frequent complications.Non-culture detection methods for cerebrospinal fluid can improve pathogen detection rates.Adverse outcomes can be noted in more than 10% of PM cases.SP strains are high sensitivity to vancomycin,linezolid,meropenem,levofloxacin,moxifloxacin,rifampicin,and chloramphenicol.[Chinese Journal of Contemporary Pediatrics,2024,26(2):131-138]

Objective:To explore the correlation between transcranial sonography (TCS) combined with serum homocysteine (Hcy), blood glucose, blood lipids, the cognitive status of Parkinson′s disease (PD) patients, and to analyze the clinical application value of these parameters in assessing the cognitive status of PD patients.Methods:A total of 152 PD patients admitted to the Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from January 2020 to June 2023 were retrospectively collected as the PD group, and 101 healthy examinees matched for age and gender during the same period were selected as control group. Clinical data [age, gender, duration of illness, Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score, Unified Parkinson′s Disease Rating Scale Part Ⅲ (UPDRS-Ⅲ) score, Hoehn-Yahr (H-Y) stage, etc.], serum tests (Hcy, blood glucose, total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein, high-density lipoprotein concentration), and TCS examination results (third ventricular width, midbrain area, peak systolic velocity of bilateral middle cerebral arteries, bilateral middle cerebral artery resistance index, bilateral substantia nigra hyperechoic area) were collected. The two groups were divided into pure PD group and PD group with elevated Hcy, pure control group and control group with elevated Hcy, based on an Hcy concentration threshold of ≥15 μmol/L. The differences in the above parameters among the four groups were compared. The correlation between Hcy and cognitive status (MoCA score, MMSE score) of PD patients and the above parameters were analyzed.Results:The MoCA score and MMSE score of the PD group with elevated Hcy were lower than those of the pure PD group, and the UPDRS-Ⅲ score and H-Y stage were higher than those of the pure PD group (all P<0.001). The order of Hcy concentration from high to low was PD group with elevated Hcy, pure Hcy elevation group, pure PD group, and pure control group. The differences in serum data and TCS data among the four groups were statistically significant (all P<0.001). Spearman correlation analysis showed: ①In the PD group, the concentration of Hcy was positively correlated with glucose concentration, H-Y stage, low-density lipoprotein concentration, right middle cerebral artery resistance index, UPDRS-Ⅲ score, total cholesterol concentration, triglyceride concentration, left middle cerebral artery resistance index, third ventricular width, and age ( rs=0.422, 0.350, 0.348, 0.334, 0.325, 0.300, 0.293, 0.283, 0.221, 0.164, all P<0.05); Hcy concentration was negatively correlated with midbrain area, MMSE score, MoCA score, peak systolic velocity of right middle cerebral artery, peak systolic velocity of left middle cerebral artery, and high-density lipoprotein concentration ( rs=-0.328, -0.282, -0.245, -0.229, -0.224, -0.192, all P<0.05). ②Clinical data, serum data, and TCS data of PD patients were all correlated with MoCA score and MMSE score, with midbrain area showing the largest positive correlation ( rs=0.524, 0.516; both P<0.05) and H-Y stage showing the largest negative correlation( rs=-0.490, -0.468; both P<0.05). Conclusions:PD patients with elevated Hcy have lower cognitive scores than pure PD patients. The correlation between Hcy concentration and blood glucose concentration is the highest in PD patients, followed by H-Y stage. The cognitive scores of PD patients are most correlated with midbrain area and unrelated to substantia nigra hyperechoic area. Lowering serum Hcy concentration in PD patients may be one of the ways to delay cognitive impairment.

Aim To predict and validate the mechanism of wenshen xuanbi tang(WSXBT) in treatment of osteoporosis (OP) based on network pharmacology, molecular docking techniques and in vivo experimental techniques. Methods Network pharmacology was used to screen the key ingredients and core targets of WSXBT for the treatment of osteoporosis. Metascape database was used for gene ontology (GO) biological process enrichment analysis and kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) signaling pathway enrichment analysis of core targets. AutoDockTools 1. 5. 7 software was applied in molecular docking to simulate the binding activity of key active ingredients to core targets. To study the efficacy of WSXBT on rats with osteoporosis and to verify the related targets and pathways, rat models of osteoporosis were established by excising the bilateral ovaries of rats. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the serum OPG, PINP and RANKL content. Biomechanical tester was applied to test the biomechanics of rat femurs. Micro-CT was applied to detect the femoral bone density. Then, Western blot was employed to measure the protein expression levels of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) and protein kinase B (Akt). Results A total of 156 active ingredients of WSXBT were screened, involving 229 potential targets, 23 core targets and 145 signaling pathways. The molecular docking results showed that five key ingredients, including quercetin, kaempferol, naringenin, isobavachin and licochalcone a, possessed good binding ability to the core targets of PIK3R1 and AKT1. The results of in vivo experiments showed that WSXBT could significantly increase bone density, improve bone tissue microstructure, enhance femur biomechanics and increase PINP expression and OPG/RANKL ratio in rats with osteoporosis. Results of WB showed that WSXBT significantly increased p-PI3K/PI3K and p-Akt/Akt ratios. Conclusions WSXBT could improve bone mineral density in postmenopausal osteoporotic rats through PI3K/ Akt signaling pathway and increasing OPG/RANKL ratio.

The growth of three plague phages from Qinghai Plateau in two Yersinia pestis strains(plague vaccine strains EV76 and 614F)and four non-Yersinia pestis strains(Yersinia pseudotuberculosis PTB3,PTB5,Escherichia coli V517,and Yersinia enterocolitica 52302-2)were detected through a micromethod based on the OmniLogTM microbial identification system and by the drop method,to provide a scientific basis for future ecological studies and classification based on the host range.For plague vaccine strains EV76 and 614F,successful phage infection and subsequent phage growth were observed in the host bacte-rium.Diminished bacterial growth and respiration and a concomitant decrease in color were observed with the OmniLogTM mi-crobial identification system at 33 ℃ for 48 h.Yersinia pseudotuberculosis PTB5 was sensitive to Yersinia pestis phage 476,but Yersinia pseudotuberculosis PST5 was insensitive to phage 087 and 072204.Three strains of non-Yersinia pestis(Yersinia pseudotuberculosis PTB3,Escherichia coli V517,and Yersinia enterocolitica 52302-2)were insensitive to Yersinia pestis pha-ges 087,072204,and 476 showed similar growth curves.The growth of phages 476 and 087,as determined with the drop method,in two Yersinia pestis strains(plague vaccine strains EV76 and 614F)and four non-Yersinia pestis strains(Yersinia pseudotuberculosis PTB3,Escherichia coli V517,and Yersin-ia enterocolitica 52302-2)showed the same results at 37 ℃,on the basis of comparisons with the OmniLogTM microbial i-dentification system;in contrast,phages 072204 did not show plaques on solid medium at 37 ℃ with plague vaccine strains EV76 and 614F.Determination based on the OmniLogTM detection system can be used as an alternative to the traditional determination of the host range,thus providing favorable application val-ue for determining the interaction between the phage and host bacteria.

Objective To study the pharmacokinetic characteristics of buspirone hydrochloride tablets in healthy adult populations under conditions of fasting and postprandial administration.Methods A single-center,randomized,three-cycle partially repeated crossover trial design was adopted,and 36 subjects were enrolled on fasting/postprandial,one tablet of the test preparation was taken in one cycle,one tablet of reference preparation(5 mg of buspirone tablets)was taken once in each of 2 cycles,the drug concentration of buspirone in plasma was determined by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry,and the pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated by WinNonlin software.Results Main pharmacokinetics of buspirone after oral administration of test and reference preparations in fasting group,the Cmax was(285.72±286.08)and(308.94±341.03)pg·mL-1;AUC0-t were(577.09±491.10)and(618.62±642.56)pg·mL-1·h;AUC0-∞ were(586.85±510.04)and(655.92±687.95)pg·mL-1·h;tmax was 0.75(0.33-4.00)and 0.75(0.33-1.75)h.Main pharmacokinetics of buspirone after oral administration of test and reference preparations in the postprandial group,the Cmax were(676.36±603.64)and(760.33±610.27)pg·mL-1;AUC0-t were(1 755.58±1 001.69)and(1 743.00±1 073.33)pg·h·mL-1;AUC0-∞ were(1 839.97±1 044.60)and(1 818.00±1 106.95)pg·mL-1·h;tmax was 1.25(0.25-4.50)and 1.00(0.25-3.50)h.The 90％confidence intervals of the AUC0-t and AUC0-∞ geometric mean ratios of the test preparation and the reference preparation in the fasting test and the postprandial test all fell between 80.00％and 125.00％,and the 95％upper confidence limit of of Cmax was ≤0 and geometric mean ratios point estimates fall between 80.00％and 125.00％.Conclusion Two kinds of buspirone hydrochloride are bioequivalent in Chinese healthy adult subject.