Endovascular treatment has become the standard treatment method for acute ischemic stroke caused by large vessel occlusion. The application of neuroimaging techniques for appropriate patient selection and prognosis prediction is of great significance for successful endovascular treatment. This article reviews the application progress of fluid-attenuated inversion recovery sequence vascular hyperintensity in patients with acute ischemic stroke underwent endovascular treatment.

OBJECTIVE To establish a method for simultaneous determination of atorvastatin （ATV） and its active metabolites 2-hydroxy atorvastatin acid （2-HAT）， 4-hydroxy atorvastatin acid （4-HAT） and toxic metabolite atorvastatin lactone （ALT） in rat plasma and apply it for pharmacokinetic study. METHODS LC-MS/MS method was adopted for analysis. The one-step precipitation method was used for processing plasma samples （plasma samples were pretreated by acidification to adjust pH value so as to prevent inversion of configuration）， gradient elution was used to analyze the samples， and the analysis time was 5 min. Electrospray positive ionization was adopted， and positive ion scanning was performed in multi-reaction monitoring. The m/z of quantified ion pairs of ATV and its metabolites such as 2-HAT， 4-HAT and ATL， and internal standard pitavastatin were 559.3→ 440.2， 575.2→440.3， 575.0→440.2， 540.9→448.2 and 422.2→290.0， respectively. After conducting a comprehensive methodological investigation of the analytical method， the concentrations of ATV and its metabolites 2-HAT， 4-HAT，and ATL were determined， and the pharmacokinetic parameters of ATV and its metabolites were calculated using the non- compartment model of WinNonlin 6.1. RESULTS The results of methodological validation showed that endogenous substances in blank plasma did not interfere with the determination of the components to be tested， and the standard curve had a good linear relationship； the lower limits of quantification for ATV， 2-HAT， 4-HAT and ATL were 0.5， 0.5， 0.25 and 0.063 nmol/L， respectively. The precision， accuracy， recovery， matrix effect and stability investigation were all in line with the requirements of biological analysis. Pharmacokinetic analysis showed that after intragastric administration in rats， ATV calcium metabolized rapidly， and was mainly exposed to blood circulation in the form of ATV and 2-HAT， with the lowest concentration of lactone-type metabolites. CONCLUSIONS The established method is precise， rapid and accurate for plasma concentration analysis of ATV and its active/toxic metabolites. The application of the method could help to fully elucidate the pharmacokinetic characteristics of atorvastatin calcium in rats.

Objective:To evaluate the clinical value of different shimming methods at 7.0 T MR in two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) T 2WI. Methods:Totally 23 healthy volunteers were prospectively recruited from the First Medical Center of PLA General Hospital from November, 2022 to May, 2023, including 12 volunteers who underwent 2D shimming mode and 14 volunteers who underwent 3D shimming mode. 2D shimming mode included patient-specific (PS) mode, direct signal control (DSC) mode, the standard circularly polarized (CP) mode, and volume-specific (VS) mode. 3D shimming mode included universal pulses (UP) mode and CP mode. The image quality for the subtentorial and supratentorial region was assessed by the subjective image quality score and signal-to-noise ratio. Comparisons of quantitative indices between multiple groups were performed using repeated-measures ANOVA or Friedman′s test; comparisons of quantitative indices between 2 groups were performed using paired-samples t test or Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results:The image quality of subtentorial region and SNR was significant differences in 2D T 2WI with PS mode, DSC mode, CP mode and VS mode ( F=26.74, P<0.001; F=28.24, P<0.001), and the image quality score and SNR of PS mode, DSC mode, VS mode were better than CP mode ( P<0.05). In 2D T 2WI, there was no significant difference in image quality score and SNR of supratentorial region in PS mode, DSC mode, CP mode ( P>0.05). Besides, in 3D T 2WI, the image quality score for subtentorial and supratentorial region of UP mode were better than those of CP mode ( Z=-2.74, P=0.006; Z=-3.24, P=0.001); SNR of subtentorial region was significantly better in UP mode than those in CP mode ( t=3.49, P=0.004). But there was no significant difference in SNR of supratentorial region between the UP mode and CP mode in 3D T 2WI ( P>0.05). Conclusion:T 2WI with different shimming methods at 7.0 T MR can provide data support for the clinical application, which is helpful for the accurate diagnosis of patients with subtentorial lesions.

As an essential trace element in living organisms, copper is actively involved in normal physiological processes in various systems and is maintained at low level to achieve copper homeostasis. Copper homeostasis, once being disrupted, would induce cell death, and this new form of cell death is known as copper death. In recent years, copper death has been increasingly recognized as an important factor mediating the onset and progression of central nervous system (CNS) diseases. Therefore, we review the pathogenic mechanism of copper death in CNS diseases, as well as its therapeutic strategies so as to deepen the understanding of researchers.

Compared with routine imaging examination, magnetic resonance vascular wall imaging (MR-VWI) has the advantages of non-invasive and accurate in the diagnosis and differentiation of moyamoya disease and atherosclerotic moyamoya syndrome, and is of great significance in guiding clinical treatment and predicting outcomes. This article reviews the features of MR-VWI in moyamoya disease and atherosclerotic moyamoya syndrome.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects and underlying mechanism of Yinxing Mihuan oral solution （YM） on neovascularization and vascular remodeling in chemical photothrombosis-induced focal cerebral ischemia model in mice. MethodFifty SPF C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into sham group， model group， ginaton group （12.5 mg·kg^-1）， and low- （YM-L， 412 mg·kg^-1） and high-dose （YM-H， 824 mg·kg^-1） YM groups， with 10 mice in each group. The focal cerebral ischemia model was established by chemical photothrombosis method. Drugs in each group were administered by gavage for 14 consecutive days after operation. The modified neurological severity score （mNSS） and measurement of forelimb grasping were used to evaluate the neurologic impairment of mice. The vascular density of infarct border-zone （IBZ） was measured by fluorescein labelled dextran （FITC-dextran） method. The morphology of IBZ was evaluated and observed by hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining. The expression of proteins related to neovascularization and vascular remodeling in brain tissues， including vascular endothelial growth factor （VEGF）， platelet and endothelial cell adhesion molecule 1 （CD31）， hypoxia-inducible factor-1α （HIF-1α）， von Willebrand factor （vWF）， and angiogenin （ANG）， was detected by Western blot. ResultCompared with the sham group， the model group showed manifest neurological deficits （P<0.01）， weakened forelimb grasping （P<0.01）， increased vascular density of IBZ （P<0.01）， and obvious pathological changes， such as neuronal necrosis and gliocyte proliferation. After treatment for 14 days， compared with the model group， the YM-H group showed improved neurological deficits （P<0.01）， and the YM-L group and the YM-H group showed strengthened forelimb grasping （P<0.01）. Moreover， the YM-L group displayed increased vascular density of IBZ （P<0.05）， reduced pathological damage， and up-regulated protein expression of CD31， ANG， HIF-1α， and vWF （P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionYM could improve motor function and pathological morphological impairment in chemical photothrombosis-induced focal cerebral ischemia mouse model， and the underlying mechanism might be related to the promotion of neovascularization and vascular remodeling in IBZ.

Gallic Acid/pharmacology* ; Humans ; Senotherapeutics ; Stem Cells

Objective:To investigate the high resolution vessel wall imaging (HR-VWI) features of basilar artery (BA) in patients with acute isolated pontine infarction (AIPI) of different infarct types, and explore the pathogenesis of AIPI.Methods:A retrospective analysis of clinical and imaging data of 52 patients with AIPI admitted to our hospital from June 2016 to November 2019 was performed. According to the morphology and location distribution of pontine high-signal lesions in diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), these patients were divided into paramedian pontine infarction (PPI) group and small deep pontine infarction (SDPI) group. The general clinical data, modified National Institute of Health stroke scale (mNIHSS) scores at admission and discharge, modified Rankin scale (mRS) scores, and incidence of basilar artery plaques and plaque characteristics of basal artery in HR-VWI of patients from the two groups were compared.Results:Among the 52 AIPI patients, there were 28 patients with PPI (54%) and 24 with SDPI (46%). The mNIHSS scores at admission and discharge in the PPI group were significantly higher than those in the SDPI group ( P<0.05). The incidence of basilar artery plaques in PPI group was significantly higher than that in SDPI group (92.9% vs. 62.5%, P<0.05). As compared with SDPI group, PPI group had a significantly higher incidence of right lateral wall plaques, a statistically lower incidence of ventral wall plaques, and a significantly higher incidence of centripetal plaques, and significantly increased maximum thickness of vessel wall ( P<0.05). Conclusion:The AIPI mechanism is generally related to the branch atheromatous disease of basilar artery; PPI patients have more severe clinical symptoms, more serious clogged perforation opening of the basilar artery plaque, more unstable basilar artery plaque than the SDPI group.

With the development of imaging technology, high-resolution magnetic resonance vascular wall imaging technology has been gradually applied to the risk assessment of intracranial aneurysms rupture. It has provided more comprehensive information for clinicians to assess the stability of intracranial aneurysms. This article summarizes the indicators used for assessing the risk of intracranial aneurysms rupture in recent years with high-resolution magnetic resonance vascular wall imaging.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between vascular wall characteristics and ischemic stroke and its mechanism in patients with atherosclerotic middle cerebral artery (MCA) stenosis.Methods:Patients with atherosclerotic MCA stenosis received high-resolution vessel wall imaging (HR-VWI) in Shenzhen Bao'an District People's Hospital from November 2017 to November 2018 were enrolled retrospectively. The imaging characteristics, such as the lumen and vessel diameter and vessel wall area at the narrowest level of MCA plaque, plaque load, remodeling index, and plaque enhancement rate were measured. A multivariate logistic regression model was used to identify the independent risk factors for stroke in patients with atherosclerotic MCA stenosis. Results:A total of 53 patients with atherosclerotic MCA stenosis were enrolled, aged (53.5±9.7) years, 28 were male (52.8 %). There were 28 in the stroke group and 25 in the non-stroke group. Thirteen patients were artery-artery embolization, 15 were non-artery-artery embolization; 39 were mild stenosis, and 14 were moderate to severe stenosis. Compared with the non-stroke group, the moderate to severe stenosis was more common in the stroke group ( P=0.010), the plaque load was greater ( P=0.006), and the remodeling index was lower ( P=0.010). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the remodeling index was an independent risk factor for stroke in patients with atherosclerotic MCA stenosis (odds ratio 0.002, 95% confidence interval 0.000-0.952; P=0.048). Compared with the non-artery-artery embolization group, the mean thickness of MCA was larger in the artery-artery embolization group ( P=0.037). Compared with the mild stenosis group, the plaque load was greater ( P=0.001), the plaque enhancement rate was higher ( P=0.004), and remodeling index was lower ( P<0.001) in the moderate to severe MCA stenosis group. Conclusions:In the atherosclerotic MCA stroke group, patients with moderate to severe stenosis are more common, with greater plaque load and lower remodeling index. Remodeling index is an independent risk factor for ischemic stroke. Patients with moderate to severe MCA stenosis have a higher plaque enhancement rate and a lower remodeling index, suggesting that the vessel wall inflammatory response is more significant and had decompensation. HR-VWI is expected to be used to assess the pathogenesis of ischemic stroke events.