Background::Thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA) is a fatal cardiovascular disease, the pathogenesis of which has not yet been clarified. This study aimed to identify and validate the diagnostic markers of TAA to provide a strong theoretical basis for developing new methods to prevent and treat this disease.Methods::Gene expression profiles of the GSE9106, GSE26155, and GSE155468 datasets were acquired from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified using the "limma" package in R. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), support vector machine-recursive feature elimination (SVM-RFE), random forest, and binary logistic regression analyses were used to screen the diagnostic marker genes. Single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) was used to estimate immune cell infiltration in TAA.Results::A total of 16 DEGs were identified. The enrichment and functional correlation analyses showed that DEGs were mainly associated with inflammatory response pathways and collagen-related diseases. Collagen type I alpha 1 chain ( COL1A1) and synaptotagmin like 2 ( SYTL2) were identified as diagnostic marker genes with a high diagnostic value for TAA. The expression of COL1A1 and SYTL2 was considerably higher in TAA vascular wall tissues than in the corresponding normal tissues, and there were significant differences in the infiltration of immune cells between TAA and normal vascular wall tissues. Additionally, COL1A1 and SYTL2 expression were associated with the infiltration of immune cells in the vascular wall tissue. Single-cell analysis showed that COL1A1 in TAA was mainly derived from fibroblasts and SYTL2 mainly from cluster of differentiation (CD)8 + T cells. In addition, single-cell analysis indicated that fibroblasts and CD8 + T cells in TAA were significantly higher than those in normal arterial wall tissue. Conclusions::COL1A1 and SYTL2 may serve as diagnostic marker genes for TAA. The upregulation of SYTL2 and COL1A1 may be involved in the inflammatory infiltration of the vessel wall and poor extracellular matrix remodeling, promoting the progression of TAA.

Objective To explore the feasibility of electrical impedance tomography(EIT)for real-time and accurate monitoring of respiration during HP anti-G movements and the key parameters of pulmonary ventilation.Methods Twelve healthy male students in our university were enrolled in September 2023 and subjected in this study.HP anti-G movements were performed 3 times each for 30 s in the anti-G physiological training apparatus,during which EIT and ophthalmic horizontal arterial pressure were measured to analyze the relationship of the global and local parameters of pulmonary ventilation,including inspiratory volume(IV),expiratory uniform(EU),expiratory speed(ES),center of ventilation(COV)and right-to-left lung ventilation ratio(RtoL)with anti-G ability of anti-G straining maneuver(AGSM).Results The average eye horizontal systolic blood pressure(SBP)at the eye level was 148.82±22.75 mmHg during HP anti-G movements,which was significantly higher than that during quiet breathing(PJ)(95.17±8.51 mmHg,P＜0.001).From the global pulmonary ventilation,the participants had significantly increased IV during HP anti-G movements(P＜0.001).According the d value(mean increase of eye horizontal SBP=SBPHP-SBPPJ),the subjects were divided into 3 groups,with the d value of＞60,30～60 and＜30 mmHg,respectively.The inspiratory volume ratio(IVHP/IVPJ)was the highest in the＞60 mmHg group and the smallest in the＜30 mmHg group(P＜0.01).The subjects had significantly decreased EU and more evenly expiration(P＜0.05),but no change was seen in the expiratory uniformity ratio(EUHP/EUPJ)among the 3 groups.ES was obviously faster during HP anti-G movements(P＜0.001),and the expiratory speed ratio(ESHP/ESPJ)had no significant difference among the 3 groups.The inspiratory time and expiratory time were 0.77±0.32 and 1.59±0.21 s,respectively,and both of them were notably shorter during HP anti-G movements(P＜0.001,P＜0.01).From the local pulmonary ventilation,COV during HP anti-G movements was significantly smaller than that during PJ(P＜0.001),and the ventilation center deviated to the ventral side,and RtoL was decreased and the ventilation distribution deviated to the left lung(P＜0.05).Conclusion EIT can perform real-time imaging of pulmonary global and local ventilation during HP anti-G movements,and it has a great application prospect in AGSM training and monitoring.

Objective:To evaluate the clinical efficacy of metal braided stent deployed by fully protruding into the inferior vena cava for the treatment of iliac vein compression syndrome(IVCS).Methods:The clinical data of patients with IVCS treated with interwoven nitinol mesh stent protruding into the inferior vena cava and released from Jan 2018 to May 2021 in our center were retrospectively analyzed.Results:A total of 118 patients were included in this study. Among them, 7 cases were complicated with acute thrombosis, 3 cases were complicated with post thrombotic syndrome (PTS), and 108 cases were no more thrombotic iliac vein compression. The technical success rate was 100%, with an average of 2.03±0.77 stents implanted. Of the 23 ulcer patients, 18 ulcers healed after intervention, and the healing rate was 78.26%. The postoperative CEAP grade was significantly improved ( t=11.54, P<0.01), and the primary patency rate and second patency rate were 97.46% and 98.31% at 1 year after intervention. Conclusion:The fashion of fully protruding into inferior vena cava deployment in the treatment of iliac vein compressive disease has a high patency rate and satisfactory clinical efficacy.

Six new ent-abietane diterpenoids, abientaphlogatones A-F (1-6), along with two undescribed ent-abietane diterpenoid glucosides, abientaphlogasides A-B (7-8) and four known analogs were isolated from the aerial parts ofPhlogacanthus curviflorus (P. curviflorus). The structures of these compounds were determined using high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HR-ESI-MS), one-dimensional and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra, and quantum chemical calculations. Notably, compounds 5 and 6 represented the first reported instances of ent-norabietane diterpenoids from the genus Phlogacanthus. In the β-hematin formation inhibition assay, compounds 2, 4, 7-10, and 12 displayed antimalarial activity, with IC₅₀ values of 12.97-65.01 μmol·L^-1. Furthermore, compounds 4, 5, 8, and 10 demonstrated neuroprotective activity in PC12 cell injury models induced by H₂O₂ and MPP⁺.
Abietanes/pharmacology* ; Antimalarials ; Hydrogen Peroxide ; Biological Assay ; Plant Components, Aerial

Objective:To evaluate the application value of three-dimension digital subtraction angiography (3D-DSA) in the diagnosis and treatment of iliac vein compression syndrome (IVCS).Methods:A retrospective analysis was made on 171 patients with a tentative diagnosis of IVCS based on signs, symptoms, and finding of CTV or MRV, and iliac vein angiography. The diagnostic efficacy of MRV, 2D-DSA and 3D-DSA were analyzed. The imaging advantages of 3D-DSA in the diagnosis and treatment of IVCS were evaluated.Results:Ninty-three patients underwent MRV and 3D-DSA simultaneously, 101 patients had 2D-DSA and 3D-DSA simultaneously. 3D-DSA was taken as gold standard, the diagonotic sensitivity, specificity, Youden index of MRV was 75.61%, 72.73% and 0.48 respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, Youden index of 2D-DSA was 90.22%, 100% and 0.90 respectively. There are significant differences in the diagonotic sensitivity between MRV and 3D-DSA, 2D-DSA and 3D-DSA ( P<0.05). There is no significant difference in the diagonotic specificity between MRV and 3D-DSA, 2D-DSA and 3D-DSA ( P=1.000). In this study, we found that 3D-DSA has greater imaging evaluation advantages in preoperative evaluation, intraoperative guidance and immediate postoperative reexamination in the diagnosis and treatment of iliac vein disease. Conclusions:3D-DSA can improve the detection rate of IVCS, and has its advantage in imaging evaluation.

Accelerated forgetting has been identified as a feature of Alzheimer's disease (AD), but the therapeutic efficacy of the manipulation of biological mechanisms of forgetting has not been assessed in AD animal models. Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1 (Rac1), a small GTPase, has been shown to regulate active forgetting in Drosophila and mice. Here, we showed that Rac1 activity is aberrantly elevated in the hippocampal tissues of AD patients and AD animal models. Moreover, amyloid-beta 42 could induce Rac1 activation in cultured cells. The elevation of Rac1 activity not only accelerated 6-hour spatial memory decay in 3-month-old APP/PS1 mice, but also significantly contributed to severe memory loss in aged APP/PS1 mice. A similar age-dependent Rac1 activity-based memory loss was also observed in an AD fly model. Moreover, inhibition of Rac1 activity could ameliorate cognitive defects and synaptic plasticity in AD animal models. Finally, two novel compounds, identified through behavioral screening of a randomly selected pool of brain permeable small molecules for their positive effect in rescuing memory loss in both fly and mouse models, were found to be capable of inhibiting Rac1 activity. Thus, multiple lines of evidence corroborate in supporting the idea that inhibition of Rac1 activity is effective for treating AD-related memory loss.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the inhibitory effect of polysaccharide of Atractylodes macrocephala (PAM) on the proliferation and invasion of hepatocellular carcinoma cells and the underlying mechanism. METHODS: Hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells were treated with different concentrations of PAM, and their proliferation and invasive ability were examined using CCK-8 assay and Transwell assay. Immunofluorescence assay was performed to detect the expression level of β-catenin, and real-time PCR and Western blotting were used to detect the mRNA and protein expressions of AKT, GSK-3β and MMP-2 in the cells. The changes in the proliferation, invasiveness and the expressions of pGSK-3β and MMP2 were examined in the cells following treatment with LiCl/PAM/LiCl plus PAM. RESULTS: PAM treatment significantly reduced the cell viability, the number of migration cells, and the expression levels of β-catenin and MMP-2 ( < 0.05), and obviously inhibited the phosphorylation of AKT and GSK-3β in the cells ( < 0.05) in a dose-dependent manner. The rescue experiment showed that LiCl reversed the inhibition of cell proliferation, invasiveness, and the Wnt/β-catenin pathway induced by PAM. CONCLUSIONS PAM can inhibit the proliferation and invasion of hepatocellular carcinoma cells possibly by inhibiting the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway.

In order to study the influence of tympanic membrane lesion and ossicular erosion caused by otitis media on the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation, a human ear finite element model including cochlear asymmetric structure was established by computed tomography (CT) technique and reverse engineering technique. The reliability of the model was verified by comparing with the published experimental data. Based on this model, the tympanic membrane lesion and ossicular erosion caused by otitis media were simulated by changing the corresponding tissue structure. Besides, these simulated diseases' effects on the round-window stimulation were studied by comparing the corresponding basilar-membrane's displacement at the frequency-dependent characteristic position. The results show that the thickening and the hardening of the tympanic membrane mainly deteriorated the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation in the low frequency; tympanic membrane perforation and the minor erosion of ossicle with ossicular chain connected slightly effected the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation. Whereas, different from the influence of the aforementioned lesions, the ossicular erosion involving the ossicular chain detachment increased its influence on performance of round-window stimulation at the low frequency. Therefore, the effect of otitis media on the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation should be considered comprehensively when designing its actuator, especially the low-frequency deterioration caused by the thickening and the hardening of the tympanic membrane; the actuator's low-frequency output should be enhanced accordingly to ensure its postoperative hearing compensation performance.
Acoustic Stimulation ; Ear Ossicles ; pathology ; Finite Element Analysis ; Hearing ; Humans ; Otitis Media ; physiopathology ; Reproducibility of Results ; Round Window, Ear ; physiology ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Tympanic Membrane Perforation

BACKGROUND:Lumbar spine MRI and electrophysiological test are reliable methods for evaluating nerve root injury caused by lumbar disc herniation.
OBJECTIVE:To analyze the correlation between the MRI-based grading system and the latency and frequency of F wave as wel as latency and amplitude of H-reflex in patients with lumbar disc herniation.
METHODS:MRI imaging of the lumbar spine was performed with a 3.0-T imager and a dedicated TCL coil to classify lumbar disc herniation and nerve root compression. F wave and H reflex were detected on the patient bilateral tibial nerves using Oxford myoelectricity evoked potential instrument.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Spearman correlation analysis showed that the MRI-based grading of patients with lumbar disc herniation had a negative correlation with F wave frequency (r=-0.594 0, P<0.000 1), and a positive correlation with F wave latency (r=0.825 6, P<0.000 1) and H-reflex latency (r=0.875 0, P<0.000 1), but no correlation with H-reflex amplitude (R=0.117 4, P=0.257 3). With MRI grading increased, F wave frequency was decreased, and F wave and H-reflex latency were prolonged gradual y, indicating aggravating nerve root compression.

Objective To compare the effects of propofol and ketamine on long-term memory and the expression of brain N-methylgroup-D-aspartate receptor 2B(NMDAR2B) and Gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor 1(GABAR1) in aged rats, and preliminary investigate the relation between the long-term memory and expression of neurotransmitter receptors in different cerebral areas. Methods The aged male rats were randomly divided into control group,propofol group and ketamine group. Morris water maze training was performed in all the rats of three groups for 5 days. On the 6th day, intraperitoneal injection of 50 mg?mL-1 propofol was administrated in propofol group,80 mg?mL-1 ketamine was intraperitoneally injected in ketamine group,and blank control group was given the same dose of saline.Seven days after the administration,space exploration experiment and navigation experiment test were performed to test the impact on the learning and memory ability of rats. After that, the expression levels of GABAR1 and NMDAR2B in temporal lobe and hippocampal CA1 region of the rat brain were detected by immunofluorescence and FISH technique. Results The results of Morris water maze showed there was no significant difference between propofol group (9.49±1.24) s and blank control group (8.82±2.22) s.There was statistically significant difference between ketamine group (12.04±2.67) s and blank control group (P<0.05),with longer latency time and less number of times of passing through target as compared with blank control group.By using immunohistochemistry and FISH technique,the expression of GABAR1 in temporal lobe and hippocampal CA1 region of the rat brain was not significantly different between propofol group and blank control group,but it was significantly up-regulated in ketamine group as compared with blank control group ( P<0.05) . The expression of NMDAR2B in temporal lobe and hippocampal CA1 region of the rat brain was not significantly different between propofol group and blank control group,but it was significantly down-regulated in ketamine group as compared with blank control group (P<0.05). Conclusion Propofol anesthesia alone had no effect on long-term learning and memory,but ketamine anesthesia can result in long-term learning and memory impairment. The mechanism may be related with down-regulation of the expression of NMDAR2B receptor and up-regulation of GABAR1 not only in CA1 region hippocampus,but also in temporal lobe.