ObjectiveIn nature, objects cast shadows due to illumination, forming the basis for stereoscopic perception. Birds need to adapt to changes in lighting (meaning they can recognize stereoscopic shapes even when shadows look different) to accurately perceive different three-dimensional forms. However, how neurons in the key visual brain area in birds handle these lighting changes remains largely unreported. In this study, pigeons (Columba livia) were used as subjects to investigate how neurons in pigeon’s ventrolateral mesopallium (MVL) represent stereoscopic shapes consistently, regardless of changes in lighting. MethodsVisual cognitive training combined with neuronal recording was employed. Pigeons were first trained to discriminate different stereoscopic shapes (concave/convex). We then tested whether and how light luminance angle and surface appearance of the stereoscopic shapes affect their recognition accuracy, and further verify whether the results rely on specify luminance color. Simultaneously, neuronal firing activity of neurons was recorded with multiple electrode array implanted from the MVL during the presentation of difference shapes. The response was finally analyzed how selectively they responded to different stereoscopic shapes and whether their selectivity was affected by the changes of luminance condition (like lighting angle) or surface look. Support vector machine (SVM) models were trained on neuronal population responses recorded under one condition (light luminance angle of 45°) and used to decode responses under other conditions (light luminance angle of 135°, 225°, 315°) to verify the invariance of responses to different luminance conditions. ResultsBehavioral results from 6 pigeons consistently showed that the pigeons could reliably identify the core 3D shape (over 80% accuracy), and this ability wasn’t affected by changes in light angle or surface appearance. Statistical analysis of 88 recorded neurons from 6 pigeons revealed that 83% (73/88) showed strong selectivity for specific 3D shapes (selectivity index>0.3), and responses to convex shapes were consistently stronger than to concave shapes. These shape-selective responses remained stable across changes in light angle and surface appearance. Neural patterns were consistent under both blue and orange lighting. The decoding accuracy achieves above 70%, suggesting stable responses under different conditions (e.g., different lighting angles or surface appearance). ConclusionNeurons in the pigeon MVL maintain a consistent neural encoding pattern for different stereoscopic shapes, unaffected by illumination or surface appearance. This ensures stable object recognition by pigeons in changing visual environments. Our findings provide new physiological evidence for understanding how birds achieve stable perception (“invariant neural representations”) while coping with variations in the visual field.

Cryoablation therapy with explicit anti-tumor mechanisms and histopathological manifestations has a long history.A large number of clinical practice has shown that cryoablation therapy is safe and effective,making it an ideal tumor treatment method in theory.Previously,its efficacy and clinical application were constrained by the limitations of refrigerants and refrigeration equipment.With the development of the new generation of cryoablation equipment represented by argon helium knives,significant progress has been made in refrigeration efficien-cy,ablation range,and precise temperature measurement,greatly promoting the progression of tumor cryoablation technology.This consensus systematically summarizes the mechanism of cryoablation technology,indications for oral mucosal melanoma(OMM)cryotherapy,clinical treatment process,adverse reactions and management,cryotherapy combination therapy,etc.,aiming to provide reference for carrying out the standardized cryoablation therapy of OMM.

Objective To explore the postmortem diffusion rule of Aconitum alkaloids and their metabo-lites in poisoned rabbits,and to provide a reference for identifying the antemortem poisoning or post-mortem poisoning of Aconitum alkaloids.Methods Twenty-four rabbits were sacrificed by tracheal clamps.After 1 hour,the rabbits were administered with aconitine LD50 in decocting aconite root powder by intragastric administration.Then,they were placed supine and stored at 25℃.The biological samples from 3 randomly selected rabbits were collected including heart blood,peripheral blood,urine,heart,liver,spleen,lung and kidney tissues at 0 h,4 h,8 h,12 h,24 h,48 h,72 h and 96 h after intragastric administration,respectively.Aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites in the biological samples were ana-lyzed by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(HPLC-MS/MS).Results At 4 h after intragastric administration,Aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites could be detected in heart blood,peripheral blood and major organs,and the contents of them changed dynamically with the preservation time.The contents of Aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites were higher in the spleen,liver and lung,especially in the spleen which was closer to the stomach.The average mass fraction of benzoylmesaconine metabolized in rabbit spleen was the highest at 48 h after intragastric administration.In contrast,the contents of Aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites in kidney were all lower.Aconi-tum alkaloids and their metabolites were not detected in urine.Conclusion Aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites have postmortem diffusion in poisoned rabbits,diffusing from high-content organs(stomach)to other major organs and tissues as well as the heart blood.The main mechanism is the dispersion along the concentration gradient,while urine is not affected by postmortem diffusion,which can be used as the basis for the identification of antemortem and postmortem Aconitum alkaloids poisoning.

Objective To study the association of hypercoagulability with urinary protein and renal pathological damage in children with immunoglobulin A vasculitis with nephritis(IgAVN).Methods Based on the results of coagulation function,349 children with IgAVN were divided into a hypercoagulability group consisting of 52 children and a non-hypercoagulability group consisting of 297 children.Urinary protein and renal pathological features were compared between the two groups,and the factors influencing the formation of hypercoagulability in children with IgAVN were analyzed.Results Compared with the non-hypercoagulability group,the hypercoagulability group had significantly higher levels of urinary erythrocyte count,24-hour urinary protein,urinary protein/creatinine,urinary immunoglobulin G/creatinine,and urinary N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase(P<0.05).The hypercoagulability group also had a significantly higher proportion of children with a renal pathological grade of Ⅲ-Ⅳ,diffuse mesangial proliferation,capillary endothelial cell proliferation,or>25％ crescent formation(P<0.05).The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that capillary endothelial cell proliferation and glomerular crescent formation>25％ were associated with the formation of hypercoagulability in children with IgAVN(P<0.05).Conclusions The renal injury in IgAVN children with hypercoagulability is more severe,with greater than 25％ crescent formation and increased proliferation of glomerular endothelial cells being important contributing factors that exacerbate the hypercoagulable state in IgAVN.[Chinese Journal of Contemporary Pediatrics,2024,26(2):164-168]

The determinations of the operation mode and basic performance conformity for evaluating the electromagnetic compatibility of brain-computer interface rehabilitation robots were described based on relevant standards of the electromag-netic compatibility of medical electrical equipment.The performance deviations and their causes during the electromagnetic compatibility evaluation of brain-computer interface rehabilitation robots were analyzed with case studies,and some improve-ment suggestions were proposed accordingly.Technical references were provided for the manufacturers of brain-computer interface rehabilitation robots.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2024,45(9):84-88]

Objective To investigate the clinical features and genetic characteristics of patients with late-onset Pompe disease(LOPD).Methods A total of 13 patients diagnosed with LOPD in the First Affilia-ted Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine from September 2020 to December 2023 were selected,and all patients were subjected to clinical investigation,GAA activity detection and GAA gene testing.Results Among the 13 patients,7 were males and 6 were females;5 were family patients and 8 were sporadic patients;and the median age of onset was 17 years(8-52 years),the median age of presentation was 24 years(10-52 years),and the median age of diagnosis was 31 years(14-58 years).In terms of the first symptoms,10 pa-tients presented with limb weakness and 3 patients presented with dyspnea.The average serum creatine kinase level was 552 U/L(55-1084 U/L),and the serum creatine kinase level was normal in one patient.All pa-tients had scoliosis and different degrees of restrictive ventilatory dysfunction.Neuroelectrophysiological exami-nations of 9 patients showed myogenic damage,and 8 of them had muscle tonic discharge.The mean value of GAA activity was 0.3 μmol/(L·h)[0.17-0.5 μmol/(L·h)].A total of 13 mutations were detected in GAA gene,and the most common mutation was c.2238G＞C(p.W746C).There were five new variant sites:c.543del(p.F181Lfs*40),c.839_840insCC(p.R281Pfs*34),c.1800_1823del(p.S601_R608del),c.2296T＞C(p.Y766H)and c.995C＞A(p.S332*).Conclusions LOPD is a rare disease that tends to delay diagnosis.Proximal limb weakness,decreased respiratory function,mild-to-moderate elevation of creatine kinase,scoliosis,and clinical inferior tonic discharge on electromyography are high-risk images of LOPD.c.2238G＞C(p.W746C)is a hotspot mutation,and the discovery of five new mutations enriches the GAA gene mutations lineage.

A quantitative analysis method for six principal active constituents (acubin, geniposidic acid, chlorogenic acid, pinoresinol di-O-glucopyranoside, geniposide, and pinoresinol 4-O-glucopyranoside) of crude Eucommiae Cortex (EC) and its salt-processed product extracts was developed to investigate and compare their pharmacokinetic behaviors in adenine-induced renal fibrotic rats in vivo. UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS technology was employed. Scan was conducted in negative ion mode and quantitative determination was carried out by MRM paired ion. The established method was fully validated by specificity, linearity, precision, accuracy, stability, recovery, and matrix effect, and the results of methodological investigation met the requirements of biological sample analysis. Then, a quick, sensitive, and accurate method was successfully established, which could simultaneously measure the contents of six active constituents of crude and salt-processed EC extracts in rat plasma. After a single administration to renal fibrotic rats of crude EC and its salt-processed product extracts, the plasma concentration of each constituent at different time points was measured, the pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated and the concentration time curves were structured. The experiment was approved by the experimental animal ethics committee from Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine (No. 202103A008). The results showed that compared to the crude Eucommiae Cortex group, the t_max of aucubin, pinoresinol di-O-glucopyranoside, geniposide, and pinoresinol 4-O-glucopyranoside in the salt-processed Eucommiae Cortex group rat plasma were significantly lower than those in the crude group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01); the C_max and AUC_{0-48 h} of chlorogenic acid, the C_max, AUC_{0-48 h} and AUC_0-∞ of pinoresinol di-O-glucopyranoside, and the C_max of geniposide and pinoresinol 4-O-glucopyranoside were significantly higher than those in the crude group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). Our investigation found that compared to crude Eucommiae Cortex, a variety of active ingredients could play a role of quick effect with higher peak blood concentration and bioavailability after oral administration of salt-processed Eucommiae Cortex, which were consistent with the traditional Chinese medicine theory of "salt-processing enhancing drug into kidney meridian", providing an experimental basis for the selection of quality control indexes and the in-depth study of processing mechanisms and metabolic rules in vivo of Eucommiae Cortex and its salt-processed product.

The immunomodulatory effect of Saposhnikoviae Radix polysaccharide(SRP) was evaluated based on the zebrafish mo-del, and its mechanism was explored by transcriptome sequencing and real-time fluorescence-based quantitative PCR(RT-qPCR). The immune-compromised model was induced by navelbine in the immunofluorescence-labeled transgenic zebrafish Tg(lyz: DsRed), and the effect of SRP on the density and distribution of macrophages in zebrafish was evaluated. The effect of SRP on the numbers of macrophages and neutrophils in wild-type AB zebrafish was detected by neutral red and Sudan black B staining. The content of NO in zebrafish was detected by DAF-FM DA fluorescence probe. The content of IL-1β and IL-6 in zebrafish was detected by ELISA. The differentially expressed genes(DEGs) of zebrafish in the blank control group, the model group, and the SRP treatment group were analyzed by transcriptome sequencing. The immune regulation mechanism was analyzed by Gene Ontology(GO)and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)enrichment, and the expression levels of key genes were verified by RT-qPCR. The results showed that SRP could significantly increase the density of immune cells in zebrafish, increase the number of macrophages and neutrophils, and reduce the content of NO, IL-1β, and IL-6 in immune-compromised zebrafish. The results of transcriptome sequencing analysis showed that SRP could affect the expression level of immune-related genes on Toll-like receptor pathway and herpes simplex infection pathway to affect the release of downstream cytokines and interferon, thereby completing the activation process of T cells and playing a role in regulating the immune activity of the body.
Animals ; Zebrafish/genetics* ; Interleukin-6/genetics* ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Cytokines/genetics* ; Macrophages ; Transcriptome

OBJECTIVES: To provide a guideline for genealogy inference and family lineage investigation through a study of the mismatch tolerance distribution of Y-STR loci in Chinese Han male lineage. METHODS: Three Han lineages with clear genetic relationships were selected. YFiler Platinum PCR amplification Kit was used to obtain the typing data of 35 Y-STR loci in male samples. The variation of Y-STR haplotypes in generation inheritance and the mismatch tolerance at 1-7 kinship levels were statistically analyzed. RESULTS: Mutations in Y-STR were family-specific with different mutation loci and numbers of mutation in different lineages. Among all the mutations, 66.03% were observed on rapidly and fast mutating loci. At 1-7 kinship levels, the number of mismatch tolerance ranged from 0 to 5 on all 35 Y-STR loci, with a maximum step size of 6. On medium and slow mutant loci, the number of mismatch tolerance ranged from 0 to 2, with a maximum step size of 3; on rapidly and fast mutant loci, the number of mismatch tolerance ranged from 0 to 3, with a maximum step size of 6. CONCLUSIONS Combined use of SNP genealogy inference and Y-STR lineage investigation, both 0 and multiple mismatch tolerance need to be considered. Family lineage with 0-3 mismatch tolerance on all 35 Y-STR loci and 0-1 mismatch tolerance on medium and slow loci can be prioritized for screening. When the number of mismatch tolerance is eligible, family lineages with long steps should be carefully excluded. Meanwhile, adding fast mutant loci should also be handled with caution.
Male ; Humans ; Haplotypes ; Chromosomes, Human, Y/genetics* ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Mutation ; Asian People/genetics* ; China ; Genetics, Population

OBJECTIVE: To derive the Chinese medicine (CM) syndrome classification and subgroup syndrome characteristics of ischemic stroke patients. METHODS: By extracting the CM clinical electronic medical records (EMRs) of 7,170 hospitalized patients with ischemic stroke from 2016 to 2018 at Weifang Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shandong Province, China, a patient similarity network (PSN) was constructed based on the symptomatic phenotype of the patients. Thereafter the efficient community detection method BGLL was used to identify subgroups of patients. Finally, subgroups with a large number of cases were selected to analyze the specific manifestations of clinical symptoms and CM syndromes in each subgroup. RESULTS: Seven main subgroups of patients with specific symptom characteristics were identified, including M3, M2, M1, M5, M0, M29 and M4. M3 and M0 subgroups had prominent posterior circulatory symptoms, while M3 was associated with autonomic disorders, and M4 manifested as anxiety; M2 and M4 had motor and motor coordination disorders; M1 had sensory disorders; M5 had more obvious lung infections; M29 had a disorder of consciousness. The specificity of CM syndromes of each subgroup was as follows. M3, M2, M1, M0, M29 and M4 all had the same syndrome as wind phlegm pattern; M3 and M0 both showed hyperactivity of Gan (Liver) yang pattern; M2 and M29 had similar syndromes, which corresponded to intertwined phlegm and blood stasis pattern and phlegm-stasis obstructing meridians pattern, respectively. The manifestations of CM syndromes often appeared in a combination of 2 or more syndrome elements. The most common combination of these 7 subgroups was wind-phlegm. The 7 subgroups of CM syndrome elements were specifically manifested as pathogenic wind, pathogenic phlegm, and deficiency pathogens. CONCLUSIONS There were 7 main symptom similarity-based subgroups in ischemic stroke patients, and their specific characteristics were obvious. The main syndromes were wind phlegm pattern and hyperactivity of Gan yang pattern.
Humans ; Syndrome ; Ischemic Stroke ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Liver ; Phenotype