Objective:To document the effectiveness of ultrasound-guided genicular nerve block (GNB) in treating knee osteoarthritis (KOA).Methods:A total of 92 KOA patients were randomly divided into an observation group and a control group with 46 in each. Those in both groups were treated conventionally, including with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, acupuncture, ultrasound, laser irradiation and manipulation therapy. The observation group additionally underwent ultrasound-guided genicular nerve block treatment, once a week for 2 weeks. Pain scoring on a visual analog scale (VAS), the Western Ontario and McMaster University Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) and a 6-minute walk test (6MWT) were used to evaluate everyone before and after the treatment, and then 8 weeks later.Results:In the observation group the average VAS rating [(3.54±2.00) at week 2 and (4.13±2.04) at week 8] and the average WOMAC subscale and total scores [(36.91±16.91) at week 8] had improved significantly right after the experiment and 8 weeks later. But in the control group this was true only right after the treatment. The observation group also demonstrated superior improvements in 6MWT distance at week 2 [(434.22±125.19)m] and week 8 [(446.35±126.45)m] compared to both its own baseline and the control group.Conclusions:Ultrasound-guided genicular nerve block is a rapid, precise, effective, and long-lasting intervention for alleviating pain, improving knee function and enhancing walking endurance in KOA patients.

BACKGROUND: Electroacupuncture (EA) treatment is efficacious in patients with respiratory disorders, although the mechanisms of its action in lung-function protection are poorly understood. This study aimed to explore the neuroanatomical mechanisms of EA stimulation at the BL13 acupoint (Feishu, EA-BL13) improvement in asthma. METHODS: Allergic asthma was induced by intranasal 2.0% ovalbumin (OVA) instillation combined with intraperitoneal injection of the 10.0% OVA. The levels of interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-5 were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Hematoxylin and eosin and periodic acid-schiff stain were used to evaluate inflammatory cell infiltration and mucus secretion. Cellular oncogene fos induction in neurons after EA stimulation was detected by immunofluorescent staining. The messenger RNA expression levels of adrenergic receptors were quantified with real-time polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: EA improved airway inflammation and mucus secretion mainly by activating somatosensory-sympathetic pathways ( P <0.001). Briefly, the intermediolateral (IML) nuclei of the spinal cord received signals from somatic EA stimulation and then delivered the information via the sympathetic trunk to the lung. Excited sympathetic nerve endings in lung tissue released large amounts of catecholamines that specifically activated the β2 adrenergic receptor (β2AR) on T cells ( P <0.01) and further decreased the levels of IL-4 and IL-5 ( P <0.001) through the cyclic adenosine monophosphate/protein kinase A signaling pathway. CONCLUSION This study provided a new explanation and clinical basis for the use of EA-BL13 as a treatment for allergic asthma in both the attack and remission stages and other respiratory disorders related to airway inflammation.
Electroacupuncture/methods* ; Animals ; Asthma/immunology* ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Male ; Inflammation/therapy* ; Interleukin-4/metabolism* ; Interleukin-5/metabolism*

Objective:To document the effectiveness of ultrasound-guided genicular nerve block (GNB) in treating knee osteoarthritis (KOA).Methods:A total of 92 KOA patients were randomly divided into an observation group and a control group with 46 in each. Those in both groups were treated conventionally, including with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, acupuncture, ultrasound, laser irradiation and manipulation therapy. The observation group additionally underwent ultrasound-guided genicular nerve block treatment, once a week for 2 weeks. Pain scoring on a visual analog scale (VAS), the Western Ontario and McMaster University Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) and a 6-minute walk test (6MWT) were used to evaluate everyone before and after the treatment, and then 8 weeks later.Results:In the observation group the average VAS rating [(3.54±2.00) at week 2 and (4.13±2.04) at week 8] and the average WOMAC subscale and total scores [(36.91±16.91) at week 8] had improved significantly right after the experiment and 8 weeks later. But in the control group this was true only right after the treatment. The observation group also demonstrated superior improvements in 6MWT distance at week 2 [(434.22±125.19)m] and week 8 [(446.35±126.45)m] compared to both its own baseline and the control group.Conclusions:Ultrasound-guided genicular nerve block is a rapid, precise, effective, and long-lasting intervention for alleviating pain, improving knee function and enhancing walking endurance in KOA patients.

Objective To observe the value of 18F-FDG PET/CT semi-quantitative parameters for predicting spread through air spaces(STAS)of clinical stage Ⅰa—Ⅲa lung adenocarcinoma.Methods Data of 85 patients with clinical stage Ⅰa—Ⅲ a lung adenocarcinoma who underwent preoperative 18F-FDG PET/CT were retrospectively analyzed.The patients were divided into positive group(n=23)or negative group(n=62)according to whether pathology showed STAS or not.Clinical and PET/CT data were compared between groups,and logistic analysis was performed to explore the efficacy of each parameter for predicting STAS.Results Significant differences of gender,carcinoma embryonic antigen,clinical stage,pathological grade,micropapillary growth and proportion were found between groups(all P＜0.05).The maximum,the mean,the peak standard uptake value(SUVmax,SUVmean,SUVpeak),as well as the maximum,the mean and the peak standard uptake value normalized by lean body mass(SULmax,SULmean,SULpeak),also the total lesion glycolysis(TLG)in positive group were all significantly higher than those in negative group(all P＜0.05).Patients'gender,proportion of micropapillary growth,SUVmax and SULmax were all independent risk factors of STAS of clinical stage Ⅰa—Ⅲa lung adenocarcinoma.The area under the curve(AUC)of the above parameters for predicting STAS was 0.666,0.912,0.839 and 0.842,respectively,and of the combination was 0.957.Conclusion 18 F-FDG PET/CT semi-quantitative parameters SUVmax and SULmax were helpful for predicting STAS of clinical stage Ⅰa—Ⅲ a lung adenocarcinoma,and further combination of gender and proportion of micropapillary growth could improve diagnostic efficacy.

Objective:To explore the value of salivary gland imaging based on deep learning and Delta radiomics in assessing salivary gland injury after 131I treatment in post-thyroidectomy thyroid cancer patients. Methods:A retrospective analysis on 223 patients (46 males, 177 females, age(47.7±14.0) years ) with papillary thyroid cancer, who underwent total thyroidectomy and 131I treatment in Affiliated Hospital of Guilin Medical University between December 2019 and January 2022, was conducted. All patients underwent salivary gland 99Tc mO 4- imaging before and after 131I therapy. The patients were categorized according to salivary gland function based on 99Tc mO 4- imaging results (normal salivary gland vs salivary gland injury), and divided into training and test sets in a ratio of 7∶3. A ResNet-34 neural network model was trained using images at the time of maximum salivary gland radioactivity and those based on background radioactivity counts for structured image feature data. The Delta radiomics approach was then used to subtract the image feature values of the two periods, followed by feature selection through t-test, correlation analysis, and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator( LASSO) algorithm, to develop logistic regression (LR), support vector machine (SVM), and K-nearest neighbor (KNN) predictive models. The diagnostic performance of 3 models for salivary gland function on the test set was compared with that of the manual interpretation. The AUCs of the 3 models on the test set were compared (Delong test). Results:Among the 67 cases of the test set, the diagnostic accuracy of 3 physicians were 89.6%(60/67), 83.6%(56/67), and 82.1%(55/67) respectively, with the time required for diagnosis of 56, 74 and 55 min, respectively. The accuracies of LR, SVM, and KNN models were 91.0%(61/67), 86.6%(58/67), and 82.1%(55/67), with the required times of 12.5, 15.3 and 17.9 s, respectively. All 3 radiomics models demonstrated good classification and predictive capabilities, with AUC values for the training set of 0.972, 0.965, and 0.943, and for the test set of 0.954, 0.913, and 0.791, respectively. There were no significant differences among the AUC values for the test set ( z values: 0.72, 1.18, 1.82, all P>0.05). Conclusion:The models based on deep learning and Delta radiomics possess high predictive value in assessing salivary gland injury following 131I treatment after surgery in patients with thyroid cancer.

Objective:To investigate the effect of rat platelet-rich plasma (PRP) gel on autologous adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) overexpressing glial-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF).Methods:This study was an experimental study. Five adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used, and the primary ADSCs were obtained by collagenase digestion, and then the cells were identified successfully. The 3 rd passage of ADSCs were obtained and divided into negative control group infected with unloaded adenovirus and overexpressing GDNF group infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus, according to random number table method (the grouping method was the same below). After 48 hours of culture, the infection of cells was observed. Five adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used, and the PRP was obtained after collecting blood by differential centrifugation. PRP was prepared into a gel and its microstructure was observed by scanning electron microscope. The ADSCs of 3 rd passage were added into the PRP solution mixture and cultured for 48 hours after gelation. The cell growth was observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining and calcein/propyl iodide staining. ADSCs infected with unloaded adenovirus and ADSCs infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus were routinely cultured in PRP gel. After 48 hours of culture, the cell growth was detected by calcein/propyl iodide staining. After culture for 24, 48, 72 hours and 1, 2, 3, 4 weeks, the supernatant of cell culture medium was collected, the absorbance value was determined by microplate analyzer, and the GDNF content was calculated, with the sample number of 3. After 48 hours of culture, the expression of S100 protein (a specific marker of Schwann cells) was detected by immunofluorescence assay. Results:After 48 hours of culture, the proportions of cells infected with adenovirus in negative control group and overexpressing GDNF group were close to 90%, and the cell growth was good. The cells in negative control group grew normally. The morphology of the cells in overexpressing GDNF group changed significantly with 80%-90% of the cells having two or more protrusions, and the protrusions were interwoven to form a network wherever the cells gathered. PRP gel formed a three-dimensional network structure with different pore sizes. After 48 hours of culture, ADSCs could be well attached to PRP gel, and 98% of the cells were alive. After 48 hours of culture, ADSCs infected with unloaded adenovirus grew well and showed typical ADSC-like spindle-shaped growth. ADSCs infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus grew well, and most of the cells had two or more protrusions, and the protrusions were interwoven into a network. After culture for 24, 48, 72 hours and 1, 2, 3, 4 weeks, the content of GDNF in the supernatant of ADSCs infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus was (90±10), (133±15), (150±10), (137±15), (132±18), (120±10), and (127±16) pg/mL, which was significantly higher than (42±7), (44±7), (43±6), (47±6), (49±5), (49±6), and (51±4) pg/mL of ADSCs infected with unloaded adenovirus (with t values of 6.20, 8.08, 15.18, 9.12, 7.99, 9.61, and 7.86, respectively, P<0.05). After 48 hours of culture, the fluorescence intensity of S100 protein expression of ADSCs infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus was significantly stronger than that of ADSCs infected with unloaded adenovirus. Conclusions:The prepared autologous three-dimensional PRP gel has good biocompatibility and can carry rat GDNF-overexpressing ADSCs and release GDNF slowly, inducing ADSCs to differentiate into Schwann cells that express high level of S100 protein.

Objective:To investigate the effect of rat platelet-rich plasma (PRP) gel on autologous adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) overexpressing glial-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF).Methods:This study was an experimental study. Five adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used, and the primary ADSCs were obtained by collagenase digestion, and then the cells were identified successfully. The 3 rd passage of ADSCs were obtained and divided into negative control group infected with unloaded adenovirus and overexpressing GDNF group infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus, according to random number table method (the grouping method was the same below). After 48 hours of culture, the infection of cells was observed. Five adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used, and the PRP was obtained after collecting blood by differential centrifugation. PRP was prepared into a gel and its microstructure was observed by scanning electron microscope. The ADSCs of 3 rd passage were added into the PRP solution mixture and cultured for 48 hours after gelation. The cell growth was observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining and calcein/propyl iodide staining. ADSCs infected with unloaded adenovirus and ADSCs infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus were routinely cultured in PRP gel. After 48 hours of culture, the cell growth was detected by calcein/propyl iodide staining. After culture for 24, 48, 72 hours and 1, 2, 3, 4 weeks, the supernatant of cell culture medium was collected, the absorbance value was determined by microplate analyzer, and the GDNF content was calculated, with the sample number of 3. After 48 hours of culture, the expression of S100 protein (a specific marker of Schwann cells) was detected by immunofluorescence assay. Results:After 48 hours of culture, the proportions of cells infected with adenovirus in negative control group and overexpressing GDNF group were close to 90%, and the cell growth was good. The cells in negative control group grew normally. The morphology of the cells in overexpressing GDNF group changed significantly with 80%-90% of the cells having two or more protrusions, and the protrusions were interwoven to form a network wherever the cells gathered. PRP gel formed a three-dimensional network structure with different pore sizes. After 48 hours of culture, ADSCs could be well attached to PRP gel, and 98% of the cells were alive. After 48 hours of culture, ADSCs infected with unloaded adenovirus grew well and showed typical ADSC-like spindle-shaped growth. ADSCs infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus grew well, and most of the cells had two or more protrusions, and the protrusions were interwoven into a network. After culture for 24, 48, 72 hours and 1, 2, 3, 4 weeks, the content of GDNF in the supernatant of ADSCs infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus was (90±10), (133±15), (150±10), (137±15), (132±18), (120±10), and (127±16) pg/mL, which was significantly higher than (42±7), (44±7), (43±6), (47±6), (49±5), (49±6), and (51±4) pg/mL of ADSCs infected with unloaded adenovirus (with t values of 6.20, 8.08, 15.18, 9.12, 7.99, 9.61, and 7.86, respectively, P<0.05). After 48 hours of culture, the fluorescence intensity of S100 protein expression of ADSCs infected with overexpressing GDNF adenovirus was significantly stronger than that of ADSCs infected with unloaded adenovirus. Conclusions:The prepared autologous three-dimensional PRP gel has good biocompatibility and can carry rat GDNF-overexpressing ADSCs and release GDNF slowly, inducing ADSCs to differentiate into Schwann cells that express high level of S100 protein.

Objective:To investigate the molecular mechanism of miR-132 regulation of neuronal apoptosis in Alzheimer′s disease model mice (AD mice).Methods:The study started and ended from 2016.01 to 2021.03. The animals were divided into the AD transgenic model mice group (AD model mice group) and the littermate negative control mice group (litter negative mice group). The number of animals in each group in the subsequent experiment was three mouses. The levels of miR-132 in the cortex and hippocampus of the two groups were detected by quantitative PCR. The TUNNEL(terminal-deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated nick end labeling) method was used to detect neuronal apoptosis in the brain tissue of the two groups of mice. The expression levels of apoptosis-related proteins in brain tissue of two groups of mice were detected by immunoblotting. The dual-luciferase reporter system recognizes downstream target proteins that miRNA-132 directly regulated. The independent sample Student′s t-test was used to compare the two groups, and the difference was statistically significant with P<0.05. Results:Compared with the littermate-negative mice, the relative expression of miRNA-132 in the cortex and hippocampus of AD mice was significantly down-regulated ( P<0.01). The results of TUNNEL showed a significant increase in neuronal apoptosis in the brain of AD mice (relative number of apoptotic cells ( P<0.01). Western blot results showed that the relative expression of apoptosis-related proteins in the brain of AD mice was significantly increased ( P<0.05 or P<0.01). The dual-luciferase reporter system showed that miRNA-132 could directly interact with the downstream protein FOXO3a, and the luciferase activity of the AD model group was significantly reduced ( P<0.01). Conclusions:miRNA-132 reduction may disinhibit apoptosis-related proteins BAX and Caspase-3 by up-regulating FOXO3a expression to speed up neuronal apoptosis in AD mice.

Objective:To investigate the molecular mechanism of miR-132 regulation of neuronal apoptosis in Alzheimer′s disease model mice (AD mice).Methods:The study started and ended from 2016.01 to 2021.03. The animals were divided into the AD transgenic model mice group (AD model mice group) and the littermate negative control mice group (litter negative mice group). The number of animals in each group in the subsequent experiment was three mouses. The levels of miR-132 in the cortex and hippocampus of the two groups were detected by quantitative PCR. The TUNNEL(terminal-deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated nick end labeling) method was used to detect neuronal apoptosis in the brain tissue of the two groups of mice. The expression levels of apoptosis-related proteins in brain tissue of two groups of mice were detected by immunoblotting. The dual-luciferase reporter system recognizes downstream target proteins that miRNA-132 directly regulated. The independent sample Student′s t-test was used to compare the two groups, and the difference was statistically significant with P<0.05. Results:Compared with the littermate-negative mice, the relative expression of miRNA-132 in the cortex and hippocampus of AD mice was significantly down-regulated ( P<0.01). The results of TUNNEL showed a significant increase in neuronal apoptosis in the brain of AD mice (relative number of apoptotic cells ( P<0.01). Western blot results showed that the relative expression of apoptosis-related proteins in the brain of AD mice was significantly increased ( P<0.05 or P<0.01). The dual-luciferase reporter system showed that miRNA-132 could directly interact with the downstream protein FOXO3a, and the luciferase activity of the AD model group was significantly reduced ( P<0.01). Conclusions:miRNA-132 reduction may disinhibit apoptosis-related proteins BAX and Caspase-3 by up-regulating FOXO3a expression to speed up neuronal apoptosis in AD mice.

Neurons are the structural and functional unit of the nervous system. Precisely regulated dendrite morphogenesis is the basis of neural circuit assembly. Numerous studies have been conducted to explore the regulatory mechanisms of dendritic morphogenesis. According to their action regions, we divide them into two categories: the intrinsic and extrinsic regulators of neuronal dendritic morphogenesis. Intrinsic factors are cell type-specific transcription factors, actin polymerization or depolymerization regulators and regulators of the secretion or endocytic pathways. These intrinsic factors are produced by neuron itself and play an important role in regulating the development of dendrites. The extrinsic regulators are either secreted proteins or transmembrane domain containing cell adhesion molecules. They often form receptor-ligand pairs to mediate attractive or repulsive dendritic guidance. In this review, we summarize recent findings on the intrinsic and external molecular mechanisms of dendrite morphogenesis from multiple model organisms, including , and mice. These studies will provide a better understanding on how defective dendrite development and maintenance are associated with neurological diseases.
Animals ; Caenorhabditis elegans ; cytology ; Dendrites ; Mice ; Morphogenesis ; Nervous System Diseases ; physiopathology ; Neurons ; cytology ; Transcription Factors ; metabolism