bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Brain signal complexity in adults with Down syndrome: Potential application in the detection of mild cognitive impairment
Authors: Fernández Alberto , Ramírez-Toraño Federico , Bruña Ricardo , Zuluaga Pilar , Esteba-Castillo Susanna , Abásolo Daniel , Moldenhauer Fernando , Shumbayawonda Elizabeth , Maestú Fernando , García-Alba Javier
Published: October 2022

Background

Down syndrome (DS) is considered the most frequent cause of early-onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and the typical pathophysiological signs are present in almost all individuals with DS by the age of 40. Despite of this evidence, the investigation on the pre-dementia stages in DS is scarce. In the present study we analyzed the complexity of brain oscillatory patterns and neuropsychological performance for the characterization of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in DS.

Materials and methods

Lempel-Ziv complexity (LZC) values from resting-state magnetoencephalography recordings and the neuropsychological performance in 28 patients with DS [control DS group (CN-DS) (n = 14), MCI group (MCI-DS) (n = 14)] and 14 individuals with typical neurodevelopment (CN-no-DS) were analyzed.

Results

Lempel-Ziv complexity was lowest in the frontal region within the MCI-DS group, while the CN-DS group showed reduced values in parietal areas when compared with the CN-no-DS group. Also, the CN-no-DS group exhibited the expected pattern of significant increase of LZC as a function of age, while MCI-DS cases showed a decrease. The combination of reduced LZC values and a divergent trajectory of complexity evolution with age, allowed the discrimination of CN-DS vs. MCI-DS patients with a 92.9% of sensitivity and 85.7% of specificity. Finally, a pattern of mnestic and praxic impairment was significantly associated in MCI-DS cases with the significant reduction of LZC values in frontal and parietal regions (p = 0.01).

Conclusion

Brain signal complexity measured with LZC is reduced in DS and its development with age is also disrupted. The combination of both features might assist in the detection of MCI within this population.
Societal economic burden of multiple sclerosis and cost-effectiveness of disease-modifying therapies
Authors: Simoens Steven
Published: October 2022

Background

In an era of scarce resources, policy makers, neurologists and other stakeholders need to be aware of the economic burden of multiple sclerosis and the cost-effectiveness of disease-modifying therapies. The aim of this article is to provide a mini-review of these health economic facets of multiple sclerosis.

Methods

An umbrella review was conducted by searching PubMed and Google Scholar from 2002 until June 2022 for peer-reviewed systematic and narrative literature reviews.

Results

An extensive body of evidence corroborates that multiple sclerosis is associated with a substantial economic burden within and outside the health care sector, that costs of secondary progressive multiple sclerosis exceed those of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, that costs increase with disease severity and are influenced by the occurrence of relapses and therapy adherence. However, cost estimates and their breakdown into various components vary between countries. Economic evaluations show that disease-modifying therapies for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis are generally not cost-effective, but these results depend on the local setting. Cost-effectiveness of disease-modifying therapies improves when a societal perspective is taken and efficacy does not wane over a lifetime horizon, when oral administration forms or dosing strategies requiring less maintenance are introduced, and when generic versions enter the market. Reimbursement recommendations related to disease-modifying therapies also differ between countries.

Conclusion

The local context matters when calculating the societal economic burden of multiple sclerosis and the cost-effectiveness of disease-modifying therapies.
The frequency and relationship with vestibular function test results of positional preference in acute vestibular neuritis
Authors: Park Ji-Yun , Lee Hyung , Kim Hyun Ah
Published: October 2022

Objective

To assess the prevalence and relationship with vestibular function test results of positional preference in acute vestibular neuritis (VN).

Methods

We prospectively recruited 33 patients with VN during the acute phase. We assessed the severity of vertigo with a visual analog scale (VAS) and the degree of spontaneous nystagmus (SN) during sitting, the head rolling to the affected, and the healthy side. Patients performed other vestibular function tests, including ocular and cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential (VEMP), on the same day or the next day of VNG testing.

Results

Twelve patients (12/33, 36%) with VN complained of more severe vertigo during lying on the affected side compared to the healthy side under visual fixation. Compared to patients without positional preference (without positional preference group), patients with positional preference (with positional preference group) showed a significantly higher VAS and maximal slow phase velocity (SPV) of SN at all positions except lying on the lesion side. However, there was no difference in the SPV gap between the two groups. 30% (10/33) of patients with VN complained of more severe vertigo while lying on the affected side compared to the healthy side without visual fixation. Maximal SPV of SN was not different between the two groups. There was no other significant difference in both canalith and otolith function test results between the two groups regardless of the visual fixation.

Conclusions

One-third of patients with acute VN had more severe vertigo while lying on the affected side than in the supine position. The positional preference was not directly related to the SN intensity or VEMP results. The positional preference might reflect the otolith damage in the setting of activation of the sustained otolith system, not the transient otolithic system.
Measurement of D-dimer in cerebrospinal fluid using a luminescent oxygen channeling immunoassay
Authors: Kohlhase Konstantin , Schaefer Jan Hendrik , Miesbach Wolfgang , Hintereder Gudrun , Kirchmayr Konstantin , Zwinge Birga , Yalachkov Yavor , Foerch Christian , Schaller-Paule Martin A.
Published: October 2022

Background

Measurement of D-dimer in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) allows insight into coagulation system activation in the central nervous system and can be utilized to monitor intracranial hemorrhage as well as acute phase processes beyond hemostasis in inflammatory and neoplastic diseases. So far, the measurability of D-dimer in low and very low concentrations in CSF was limited in conventional immunoassays. Novel high-sensitivity chemiluminescent immunoassays such as the luminescent oxygen channeling immunoassay (LOCI®) are getting increasingly available but have not been validated in CSF. The aim of this study was to investigate the accuracy and linearity of the LOCI® in assessing D-dimer in CSF.

Methods

INNOVANCE LOCI hs D-dimer reagent cartridge was used for the measurement of D-dimer in CSF of patients with different neurological diseases. For the evaluation of linearity, dilution series were performed in a pooled CSF sample with the determination of intra-assay precision (CV, coefficient of variation) in 3 individual samples with 20 replicates. Furthermore, D-dimer concentrations measured by LOCI® were compared with the respective results of a routinely available clinical latex-enhanced immunoassay (HemosiIL D-Dimer HS 500).

Results

Linear regression analysis of the LOCI® method revealed a r2 of 1.00 (p < 0.001) with a regression coefficient B of 1.012 ± 0.003 (CI: 1.005–1.019, p < 0.001) and an intercept of −1.475 ± 1.309 (CI: −4.493 to 1.543); the median intra-assay CV was 0.69% (range: 0.68–0.75). In total, 185 CSF samples were measured by LOCI® technology, showing a mean concentration of 204.84 ± 2,214.93 ng/ml. D-dimer concentration between LOCI and latex-enhanced immunoassay differed by a factor of 10.6 ± 13.6 on average with a maximum deviation by a factor of 61.3; the maximum deviation was found at low concentrations.

Conclusion

D-dimer in CSF of patients with neurological disease can be reliably measured by the LOCI® method with high linearity and accuracy at low concentrations.
Outcomes after endovascular thrombectomy for acute ischemic stroke patients with active cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Duan Linyan , Fu Zhaolin , Zhao Hengxiao , Song Chengyu , Tian Qiuyue , Dmytriw Adam A. , Regenhardt Robert W. , Sun Ziyi , Guo Xiaofan , Wang Xue , Yang Bin
Published: October 2022

Background

Active cancer (AC) is a known risk factor for stroke and a common comorbidity among patients being considered for treatment with endovascular thrombectomy (EVT). This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the current evidence for the feasibility, efficacy, and safety of EVT for patients with AC.

Methods

MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library were searched for relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies which met the inclusion criteria for EVT in patients with AC. Studies were excluded due to the mismatch of data format, article type, and group design. The risk of bias was assessed through different scales according to the study design. I2 statistics were used to evaluate the heterogeneity. Funnel plots were used to evaluate publication bias.

Results

A total of six studies and 3,657 patients were included. Compared to without active cancer (WC) patients, patients with AC had a significantly higher proportion of in-hospital mortality (OR 3.24; 95% CI, 1.03–10.15). The estimated rate of favorable outcome of six studies was lower in patients with AC than in patients with WC (OR 0.47; 95% CI, 0.35–0.65). For 90-day mortality of four studies, the AC group had a higher proportion when compared with the WC group (OR 3.87; 95% CI, 2.64–5.68). There was no difference between rate of six studies of successful recanalization (OR 1.24; 95% CI, 0.90–1.72) and four studies of symptomatic ICH (OR 1.09; 95% CI, 0.61–1.97) comparing AC and WC.

Conclusion

Patients with AC are less likely to have a favorable outcome and have a higher risk of mortality after EVT. Further studies are warranted for this unique patient population.
The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on treatment delay and short-term neurological functional prognosis for acute ischemic stroke during the lockdown period
Authors: Gu Shiyuan , Li Jie , Shen Huachao , Dai Zhengze , Bai Yongjie , Zhang Shuai , Zhao Hongyi , Zhou Suiyun , Yu Yan , Tang Wuzhuang
Published: October 2022

Background

Preventive strategies implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic may negatively influence the management of patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Nowadays, studies have demonstrated that the pandemic has led to a delay in treatment among patients with AIS. Whether this delay contributes to meaningful short-term outcome differences warranted further exploration.

Objective

The objective of this study was to evaluate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on treatment delay and short-term outcomes of patients with AIS treated with IVT and MT.

Methods

Patients admitted before (from 11/1/2019 to 1/31/2020) and during the COVID-19 pandemic (from 2/1/2020 to 3/31/2020) were screened for collecting sociodemographic data, medical history information, and symptom onset status, and comparing the effect of treatment delay. The patients treated with IVT or MT were compared for delay time and neurological outcomes. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate the effect of treatment delay on short-term neurological prognosis.

Results

In this study, 358 patients receiving IVT were included. DTN time increased from 50 min (IQR 40–75) before to 65 min (IQR 48–84), p = 0.048. 266 patients receiving MT were included. The DTP was 120 (112–148) min vs. 160 (125-199) min before and during the pandemic, p = 0.002. Patients with stroke during the pandemic had delays in treatment due to the need for additional PPE (p < 0.001), COVID-19 screening processes (p < 0.001), multidisciplinary consultation (p < 0.001), and chest CT scans (p < 0.001). Compared with pre-COVID-19, during the pandemic, patients had a higher likelihood of spontaneous intracranial hemorrhage after IVT (OR: 1.10; 95% CI, 1.03–1.30) and a lower likelihood of mRS scores 0–2 at discharge (OR: 0.90; 95% CI, 0.78–0.99). In logistic regression analysis, high NIHSS score at admission, increasing age, worse pre-admission mRS, large vessel occlusion, admission during the lockdown period, and low mTICI grade after MT were associated with an mRS ≥ 3.

Conclusion

The COVID-19 pandemic has had remarkable impacts on the management of AIS. The pandemic might exacerbate certain time delays and play a significant role in early adverse outcomes in patients with AIS.
An economic model of the drives from Friston’s free energy perspective
Authors: Sikora Gustaw
Published: October 2022

This paper is focused on the theory of drives, particularly on its economic model, which was an integral part of Freud’s original formulation. Freud was aiming to make a link between the psychic energy of drives and the biophysical rules of nature. However, he was not able to develop this model into a comprehensive system linking the body and the mind. The further development of psychoanalytic theory, in various attempts to comprehend the theory of drives, can be described as taking different approaches. Some of them equate drives with bodily impulses, others abandon the economic model, a few stay with Freud’s original model. I believe that the Friston notion of free energy and the hierarchical model of the brain allows us to develop this model and to integrate the economic model into some contemporary theories of drives. I argue against those theories equating drives with biological impulses. My arguments are supported by Freud’s project itself but also by recent developments within neuro-psychoanalysis describing the process of mentalizing homeostasis, interoceptive signals and relations with caregivers. I argue for those theories which see the drives as psychic forces, which through developmental processes and cathexes acquire aims and objects, and become intertwined with impulses originating internally and externally, such as affect, interoceptive impulses, perception of the external world, and impulses from erotogenic zones in particular. Here, I present my analysis of the compatibility and consistency of free energy and the hierarchical model perspective, and two psychoanalytical traditions of thoughts: French psychoanalysis and the post-Kleinian school of British psychoanalysis. In particular, my analysis focuses on the contemporary Kleinian notion of unconscious phantasies, especially Bronstein’s description of their semiotic aspects. Secondly, I look at Segal’s view of drives as dialectic forces of adaptation vs. conservatism. Analyzing the French tradition, I focus on Green’s perspective on the drives, Lacan’s distinction between drives and desire, and Penot’s description of the process of subjectivation. I conclude that free energy, as described by Friston, can be seen as a source of the drives’ energy and the process of minimizing it is an equivalent of what Freud described as binding the free energy, in which psychic unbound energy acquires distinctive features and becomes bound.
Black-box and surrogate optimization for tuning spiking neural models of striatum plasticity
Authors: Cruz Nicolás C. , González-Redondo Álvaro , Redondo Juana L. , Garrido Jesús A. , Ortigosa Eva M. , Ortigosa Pilar M.
Published: October 2022

The basal ganglia (BG) is a brain structure that has long been proposed to play an essential role in action selection, and theoretical models of spiking neurons have tried to explain how the BG solves this problem. A recently proposed functional and biologically inspired network model of the striatum (an important nucleus of the BG) is based on spike-timing-dependent eligibility (STDE) and captured important experimental features of this nucleus. The model can recognize complex input patterns and consistently choose rewarded actions to respond to such sensory inputs. However, model tuning is challenging due to two main reasons. The first is the expert knowledge required, resulting in tedious and potentially biased trial-and-error procedures. The second is the computational cost of assessing model configurations (approximately 1.78 h per evaluation). This study addresses the model tuning problem through numerical optimization. Considering the cost of assessing solutions, the selected methods stand out due to their low requirements for solution evaluations and compatibility with high-performance computing. They are the SurrogateOpt solver of Matlab and the RBFOpt library, both based on radial basis function approximations, and DIRECT-GL, an enhanced version of the widespread black-box optimizer DIRECT. Besides, a parallel random search serves as a baseline reference of the outcome of opting for sophisticated methods. SurrogateOpt turns out to be the best option for tuning this kind of model. It outperforms, on average, the quality of the configuration found by an expert and works significantly faster and autonomously. RBFOpt and the random search share the second position, but their average results are below the option found by hand. Finally, DIRECT-GL follows this line becoming the worst-performing method.
Robots engage face-processing less strongly than humans
Authors: Momen Ali , Hugenberg Kurt , Wiese Eva
Published: October 2022

Robot faces often differ from human faces in terms of their facial features (e.g., lack of eyebrows) and spatial relationships between these features (e.g., disproportionately large eyes), which can influence the degree to which social brain [i.e., Fusiform Face Area (FFA), Superior Temporal Sulcus (STS); Haxby et al., 2000] areas process them as social individuals that can be discriminated from other agents in terms of their perceptual features and person attributes. Of interest in this work is whether robot stimuli are processed in a less social manner than human stimuli. If true, this could undermine human–robot interactions (HRIs) because human partners could potentially fail to perceive robots as individual agents with unique features and capabilities—a phenomenon known as outgroup homogeneity—potentially leading to miscalibration of trust and errors in allocation of task responsibilities. In this experiment, we use the face inversion paradigm (as a proxy for neural activation in social brain areas) to examine whether face processing differs between human and robot face stimuli: if robot faces are perceived as less face-like than human-faces, the difference in recognition performance for faces presented upright compared to upside down (i.e., inversion effect) should be less pronounced for robot faces than human faces. The results demonstrate a reduced face inversion effect with robot vs. human faces, supporting the hypothesis that robot faces are processed in a less face-like manner. This suggests that roboticists should attend carefully to the design of robot faces and evaluate them based on their ability to engage face-typical processes. Specific design recommendations on how to accomplish this goal are provided in the discussion.
Case Report: Vitamin C combined with multiple micronutrient deficiencies is associated with pulmonary arterial hypertension in children with autistic spectrum disorder
Authors: Sakamornchai Wirada , Dumrongwongsiri Oraporn , Siwarom Sirinapa
Published: October 2022

Children with developmental and behavioral problems including autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs) may have inappropriate feeding behaviors, which leads to an increased risk of multiple nutrient deficiencies. Vitamin C deficiency is one of the common nutrient deficiencies reported in children with inappropriate feeding. This case report illustrates two cases of ASD children with a clinical presentation of pulmonary arterial hypertension, a rare presentation of vitamin C deficiency. Vitamin C supplementation, pulmonary vasodilator, and supportive treatment were provided. Patients could recover from the illness and could be discharged from the hospital in a short time. In addition to vitamin C, the patients also had multiple micronutrient deficiencies. Nutrition counseling was given and micronutrient supplement was continued until follow-up. Regular nutrition assessment and counseling among children with ASD are needed to prevent nutrient deficiencies which may lead to life-threatening complications.
Impact of metabolic syndrome on the long-term prognosis of patients with hepatitis B virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma after hepatectomy
Authors: Zhang Kang-Jun , Ye Tai-Wei , Lu Wen-Feng , Xu Fei-Qi , Xie Ya-Ming , Wang Dong-Dong , Xiao Zun-Qiang , Liu Si-Yu , Yao Wei-Feng , Cheng Jian , Shen Guo-Liang , Liu Jun-Wei , Zhang Cheng-Wu , Huang Dong-Sheng , Liang Lei
Published: October 2022

Background & aims

The long-term prognosis of patients with metabolic syndrome (MS) and hepatitis B virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HBV-HCC) after radical hepatectomy remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the effect of MS on long-term survival for patients with HBV-related HCC after hepatectomy.

Methods

Patients with HBV-HCC after hepatectomy were included. Patients were stratified into MS-HBV-HCC and HBV-HCC groups. Clinical features and surgical outcomes were compared between the two groups, and COX regression analysis was used to determine independent risk factors associated with overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS).

Result

389 patients (MS-HBV-HCC group: n=50, HBV-HCC group: n=339) were enrolled for further analysis. Baseline characteristics showed that patients with MS-HBV-HCC were associated with a high rate of elderly patients, ASA score, and co-morbid illness, but a lower rate of anatomy hepatectomy. There were no significant differences in perioperative complications. After excluding patients who relapsed or died within 90 days after surgery, multivariate Cox regression analysis showed MS was an independent risk factor of OS (HR 1.68, 95% CI 1.05-2.70, P = 0.032) and RFS (HR 1.78, 95% CI 1.24-2.57, P = 0.002).

Conclusion

MS is an independent risk factor for poor OS and RFS in HBV-infected HCC patients after radical hepatectomy. This suggests that we need to strengthen postoperative follow-up of the relevant population and encourage patients to develop a healthy lifestyle.
Automatic detection of early gastric cancer in endoscopy based on Mask region-based convolutional neural networks (Mask R-CNN)(with video)
Authors: Jin Jing , Zhang Qianqian , Dong Bill , Ma Tao , Mei Xuecan , Wang Xi , Song Shaofang , Peng Jie , Wu Aijiu , Dong Lanfang , Kong Derun
Published: October 2022

The artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted endoscopic detection of early gastric cancer (EGC) has been preliminarily developed. The currently used algorithms still exhibit limitations of large calculation and low-precision expression. The present study aimed to develop an endoscopic automatic detection system in EGC based on a mask region-based convolutional neural network (Mask R-CNN) and to evaluate the performance in controlled trials. For this purpose, a total of 4,471 white light images (WLIs) and 2,662 narrow band images (NBIs) of EGC were obtained for training and testing. In total, 10 of the WLIs (videos) were obtained prospectively to examine the performance of the RCNN system. Furthermore, 400 WLIs were randomly selected for comparison between the Mask R-CNN system and doctors. The evaluation criteria included accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value. The results revealed that there were no significant differences between the pathological diagnosis with the Mask R-CNN system in the WLI test (χ2 = 0.189, P=0.664; accuracy, 90.25%; sensitivity, 91.06%; specificity, 89.01%) and in the NBI test (χ2 = 0.063, P=0.802; accuracy, 95.12%; sensitivity, 97.59%). Among 10 WLI real-time videos, the speed of the test videos was up to 35 frames/sec, with an accuracy of 90.27%. In a controlled experiment of 400 WLIs, the sensitivity of the Mask R-CNN system was significantly higher than that of experts (χ2 = 7.059, P=0.000; 93.00% VS 80.20%), and the specificity was higher than that of the juniors (χ2 = 9.955, P=0.000, 82.67% VS 71.87%), and the overall accuracy rate was higher than that of the seniors (χ2 = 7.009, P=0.000, 85.25% VS 78.00%). On the whole, the present study demonstrates that the Mask R-CNN system exhibited an excellent performance status for the detection of EGC, particularly for the real-time analysis of WLIs. It may thus be effectively applied to clinical settings.
A nomogram based on radiomics signature and deep-learning signature for preoperative prediction of axillary lymph node metastasis in breast cancer
Authors: Wang Dawei , Hu Yiqi , Zhan Chenao , Zhang Qi , Wu Yiping , Ai Tao
Published: October 2022

Purpose

To develop a nomogram based on radiomics signature and deep-learning signature for predicting the axillary lymph node (ALN) metastasis in breast cancer.

Methods

A total of 151 patients were assigned to a training cohort (n = 106) and a test cohort (n = 45) in this study. Radiomics features were extracted from DCE-MRI images, and deep-learning features were extracted by VGG-16 algorithm. Seven machine learning models were built using the selected features to evaluate the predictive value of radiomics or deep-learning features for the ALN metastasis in breast cancer. A nomogram was then constructed based on the multivariate logistic regression model incorporating radiomics signature, deep-learning signature, and clinical risk factors.

Results

Five radiomics features and two deep-learning features were selected for machine learning model construction. In the test cohort, the AUC was above 0.80 for most of the radiomics models except DecisionTree and ExtraTrees. In addition, the K-nearest neighbor (KNN), XGBoost, and LightGBM models using deep-learning features had AUCs above 0.80 in the test cohort. The nomogram, which incorporated the radiomics signature, deep-learning signature, and MRI-reported LN status, showed good calibration and performance with the AUC of 0.90 (0.85-0.96) in the training cohort and 0.90 (0.80-0.99) in the test cohort. The DCA showed that the nomogram could offer more net benefit than radiomics signature or deep-learning signature.

Conclusions

Both radiomics and deep-learning features are diagnostic for predicting ALN metastasis in breast cancer. The nomogram incorporating radiomics and deep-learning signatures can achieve better prediction performance than every signature used alone.
SLC25A25-AS1 over-expression could be predicted the dismal prognosis and was related to the immune microenvironment in prostate cancer
Authors: Zhao Ying-Ying , Xiang Qian-Ming , Chen Jia-Li , Zhang Li , Zheng Wei-Long , Ke Di , Shi Rong-Shu , Yang Kong-Wu
Published: October 2022

It has been established that long-chain coding RNA (lncRNA) SLC25A25-AS1 is associated with cancer progression. However, the roles and mechanisms of SLC25A25-AS1 in prostate cancer (PC) have not been reported in the literature. The present study explored the relationship between SLC25A25-AS1 expression and PC progression via comprehensive analysis. The pan-cancer expression of SLC25A25-AS1 was identified using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and tissue specimens from our hospital. The expression levels of SLC25A25-AS1 in various subgroups based on the clinical features were identified. The prognostic value of SLC25A25-AS1 and SLC25A25-AS1 co-expressed lncRNAs in PC patients was assessed by survival analysis and ROC analysis, and prognosis-related risk models of SLC25A25-AS1 were constructed. The relationship between SLC25A25-AS1 and the PC immune microenvironment was investigated using correlation analysis. SLC25A25-AS1 expression in PC was significantly increased and correlated with the T stage, clinical stage, Gleason score (GS), and dismal prognosis. SLC25A25-AS1 overexpression exhibited good performance in evaluating the prognosis of PC patients. The area under the curves (AUCs) of the 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival (OS) for SLC25A25-AS1 was 1, 0.876, and 0.749. Moreover, the AUCs for the 1-, 3-, and 5-year progress free interval (PFI) for SLC25A25-AS1 were 0.731, 0.701, and 0.718. SLC25A25-AS1 overexpression correlated with the infiltration of CD8 T cells, interstitial dendritic cells (IDC), macrophages and other cells. AC020558.2, ZNF32-AS2, AP4B1-AS1, AL355488.1, AC109460.3, SNHG1, C3orf35, LMNTD2-AS1, and AL365330.1 were significantly associated with SLC25A25-AS1 expression, and short OS and PFI in PC patients. The risk models of the SLC25A25-AS1-related lncRNAs were associated with a dismal prognosis in PC. Overall, SLC25A25-AS1 expression was increased in PC and related to the prognosis and PC immune microenvironment. The risk model of SLC25A25-AS1 have huge prospect for application as prognostic tools in PC.
Survival benefit after neoadjuvant or adjuvant radiotherapy for stage II–III gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma: A large population-based cohort study
Authors: Zuo Zhichao , Peng Yafeng , Zeng Ying , Lin Shanyue , Zeng Weihua , Zhou Xiao , Zhou Yinjun , Li Bo , Ma Jie , Long Mingju , Cao Shenghui , Liu Yang
Published: October 2022

Objective

The standard treatment for stage II–III gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma (GEJA) remains controversial, and the role of radiotherapy (RT) in stage II–III GEJA is unclear. Herein, we aimed to evaluate the prognosis of different RT sequences and identify potential candidates to undergo neoadjuvant RT (NART) or adjuvant RT (ART).

Materials and methods

In total, we enrolled 3,492 patients with resectable stage II–III GEJA from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database, subsequently assigned to three categories: T1–2N+, T3–4N−, and T3–4N+. Survival curves were evaluated using the Kaplan–Meier method along with the log-rank test. We compared survival curves for NART, ART, and non-RT in the three categories. To further determine histological types impacting RT-associated survival, we proposed new categories by combining the tumor, node, and metastasis (TNM) stage with Lauren’s classification.

Results

ART afforded a significant survival benefit in patients with T1–2N+ and T3–4N+ tumors. In addition, NART conferred a survival advantage in patients with T3–4N+ and T3–4 exhibiting the intestinal type. Notably, ART and NART were both valuable in patients with T3–4N+, although no significant differences between treatment regimens were noted.

Conclusions

Both NART and ART can prolong the survival of patients with stage II–III GEJA. Nevertheless, the selection of NART or ART requires a concrete analysis based on the patient’s condition.
Anti-contactin-associated protein-like 2 antibody-associated encephalitis in children: A case report and literature review
Authors: Dou Qingyang , Li Renke , Shu Xiaomei
Published: October 2022

Background

Anti-Contactin-associated protein-like 2 (CASPR2) antibody-associated encephalitis is a rare group of autoimmune diseases that causes extensive damage to the central and/or peripheral nervous system.

Case presentation

Here, we reported a case of anti-CASPR2 antibody-associated encephalitis in a 12-year-old male patient with symptoms of headache, consciousness disturbance, mental abnormalities, urinary incontinence, fasciculations in the extremity muscles, and involuntary movements. The testing for autoimmune encephalitis-associated antibodies showed that CASPR2-associated antibodies were positive, and electroencephalography showed diffuse slow waves. No tumor was found after screening for malignancies. The child's status significantly improved after receiving immunotherapy with intravenous methylprednisolone and immunoglobulin.

Conclusions

Anti-CASPR2 antibody-associated encephalitis has been rarely reported in children. It has a complex clinical presentation and a low incidence of tumor. Most pediatric patients have a favorable prognosis and relapse is uncommon.
Infections and immune dysregulation in ataxia-telangiectasia children with hyper-IgM and non-hyper-IgM phenotypes: A single-center experience
Authors: Szczawińska-Popłonyk Aleksandra , Tąpolska-Jóźwiak Katarzyna , Schwartzmann Eyal , Pietrucha Barbara
Published: October 2022

Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) is a severe syndromic neurodegenerative inborn error of immunity characterized by DNA reparation defect, chromosomal instability, and hypersensitivity to ionizing radiation, thereby predisposing affected individuals to malignant transformation. While the leading disease symptomatology is associated with progressively debilitating cerebellar ataxia accompanied by central and peripheral nervous system dysfunctions, A-T is a multisystemic disorder manifesting with the heterogeneity of phenotypic features. These include airway and interstitial lung disease, chronic liver disease, endocrine abnormalities, and cutaneous and deep-organ granulomatosis. The impaired thymic T cell production, defective B cell development and antibody production, as well as bone marrow failure, contribute to a combined immunodeficiency predisposing to infectious complications, immune dysregulation, and organ-specific immunopathology, with the A-T hyper-IgM (HIGM) phenotype determining the more severe disease course. This study aimed to clarify the immunodeficiency and associated immune dysregulation as well as organ-specific immunopathology in children with A-T. We also sought to determine whether the hyper-IgM and non-hyper-IgM phenotypes play a discriminatory role and have prognostic significance in anticipating the clinical course and outcome of the disease. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of twelve A-T patients, aged from two to eighteen years. The patients' infectious history, organ-specific symptomatology, and immunological workup including serum alpha-fetoprotein, immunoglobulin isotypes, IgG subclasses, and lymphocyte compartments were examined. For further comparative analysis, all the subjects were divided into two groups, HIGM A-T and non-HIGM A-T. The clinical evaluation of the study group showed that recurrent respiratory tract infections due to viral and bacterial pathogens and a chronic obstructive airway disease along with impaired humoral immunity, in particular complete IgA deficiency, were noted in all the A-T patients, with both HIGM and non-HIGM phenotypes. The most important features with the discriminatory role between groups, were autoimmune disorders, observable four times more frequently in HIGM than in non-HIGM A-T. Two patients with the HIGM A-T phenotype were deceased due to liver failure and chronic Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection. It may therefore be assumed that the HIGM form of A-T is associated with more profound T cell dysfunction, defective immunoglobulin class switching, chronic EBV expansion, and poorer prognosis.
Quantification of promoting efficiency and reducing toxicity of Traditional Chinese Medicine: A case study of the combination of Tripterygium wilfordii hook. f. and Lysimachia christinae hance in the treatment of lung cancer
Authors: Zhang Xiaoyi , Wang Kexin , Dai Hui , Cai Jieqi , Liu Yujie , Yin Chuanhui , Wu Jie , Li Xiaowei , Wu Guiyong , Lu Aiping , Liu Qinwen , Guan Daogang
Published: October 2022

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) usually acts in the form of compound prescriptions in the treatment of complex diseases. The herbs contained in each prescription have the dual nature of efficiency and toxicity due to their complex chemical component, and the principle of prescription is usually to increase efficiency and reduce toxicity. At present, the studies on prescriptions have mainly focused on the consideration of the material basis and possible mechanism of the action mode, but the quantitative research on the compatibility rule of increasing efficiency and reducing toxicity is still the tip of the iceberg. With the extensive application of computational pharmacology technology in the research of TCM prescriptions, it is possible to quantify the mechanism of synergism and toxicity reduction of the TCM formula. Currently, there are some classic drug pairs commonly used to treat complex diseases, such as Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f. with Lysimachia christinae Hance for lung cancer, Aconitum carmichaelii Debeaux with Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch. in the treatment of coronary heart disease, but there is a lack of systematic quantitative analysis model and strategy to quantitatively study the compatibility rule and potential mechanism of synergism and toxicity reduction. To address this issue, we designed an integrated model which integrates matrix decomposition and shortest path propagation, taking into account both the crosstalk of the effective network and the propagation characteristics. With the integrated model strategy, we can quantitatively detect the possible mechanisms of synergism and attenuation of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f. and Lysimachia christinae Hance in the treatment of lung cancer. The results showed the compatibility of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f. and Lysimachia christinae Hance could increase the efficacy and decrease the toxicity of lung cancer treatment through MAPK pathway and PD-1 checkpoint pathway in lung cancer.
Effects of Juhongtanke oral solution on alleviating the symptoms of community-acquired pneumonia: A multicenter, prospective, randomized controlled trial
Authors: Liang Min , Hu Linhui , Luo Ning , Lv Hualiang , Chen Zhihua , Mo Jianping , Yang Meiyan , Lin Ying , Chen Chunbo
Published: October 2022

Introduction: The timely alleviation of symptoms is essential for managing community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Juhongtanke oral solution is a traditional marketed Chinese patent medicine believed to ease CAP symptoms. The currently available evidence is based on a few retrospective studies of patients with various types of pneumonia, whereas robust randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that support this notion are lacking.

Material and methods: In this multi-center, prospective RCT, patients were randomly allocated to receive routine treatment alone or a combination of Juhongtanke oral solution (20 mL q8h) for 5 days and maintained for an additional 3-day safety observation period. The primary outcome was Breathlessness, Cough, and Sputum Scale (BCSS) score evaluated on day 5. Secondary outcomes included the evaluation of cough and dyspnea items in the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) from days 1–5, remission rate in BCSS and VAS during the treatment course, and the length of hospitalization and in-hospital mortality.

Results: Of 272 patients assessed for eligibility, 240 were enrolled in the study (n =120 per group). The mean difference in BCSS evaluated on day 5 was a median 1 point [95%CI (1.00, 2.00)], significantly lower in the treatment group compared with the control group (p < 0.001). Similar results were observed in VAS on day 5, with statistics of a median 2 points [95%CI (1.40, 2.50)] in the cough item and a median 1 point [95%CI (0.50, 2.00)] in the dyspnea item, significantly lower in the treatment group compared with the control group (both p < 0.001). The treatment group had a favorable outcome in BCSS and VAS remission rate assessments compared with the control group, with 99.50% vs. 89.17% in BCSS (p = 0.01), 98.33% vs. 75% in the cough item of VAS (p < 0.001), and 88.33% vs. 62.50% in the dyspnea item of VAS (p < 0.001), respectively. No notable adverse effects were observed during the study. No differences were observed in the length of hospitalization between groups (with a median of 7 days for both groups, p = 0.871).

Conclusion: Juhongtanke oral solution may be considered to alleviate the clinical symptoms of CAP.
Analysis and Optimization of Organic Tandem Solar Cells by Full Opto-Electronic Simulation
Authors: Aeberhard Urs , Schiller Andreas , Masson Yannick , Zeder Simon J. , Blülle Balthasar , Ruhstaller Beat
Published: October 2022

This paper reports on the analysis and optimization of high-efficiency organic tandem solar cells via full opto-electronic device simulation on continuum level and using a hopping model for the explicit description of the charge recombination junction. Inclusion of the electrical sub-cell interconnection allows for a rigorous assessment of the impact of the internal charge distribution and associated built-in fields as well as quasi-Fermi level profiles on the measured device characteristics. It enables the direct evaluation of the external quantum efficiency in a simulation that follows closely the measurement protocol, and sheds light on complications related to the dependence of the band profile on the illumination conditions. The study also points at fingerprints of insufficient junction quality in the electrical characteristics of the tandem device. After studying the impact of key electrical parameters such as, carrier mobility, lifetime and interface hopping rate, onto the device characteristics, the latter are optimized not only optically, but also electronically, adding in both cases an increasing number of layers to the parameters of the global optimization procedure. An improvement of 2% absolute power conversion efficiency by using the full opto-electronic optimization as compared to optical optimization only is found.
MERP: Motifs enhanced network embedding based on edge reweighting preprocessing
Authors: Lv Shaoqing , Xiang Ju , Li Yiyang , Ren Xincheng , Lu Guangyue
Published: October 2022

Network embedding has attracted a lot of attention in different fields recently. It represents nodes in a network into a low-dimensional and dense space while preserving the structural properties of the network. Some methods (e.g. motif2Vec, RUM, and MODEL) have been proposed to preserve the higher-order structures, i.e., motifs in embedding space, and they have obtained better results in some downstream network analysis tasks. However, there still exists a significant challenge because original motifs may include redundant noise edges, and embedding entire motifs into embedding space may adversely affect the performance in downstream tasks. To overcome this problem, we propose a motifs enhancement framework for network embedding, based on edge reweighting. Through edge reweighting, the weight of redundant noise edges between motifs is decreased. Therefore, the effect of redundant noise edges will be reduced in the embedding space. We apply the edge reweighting as a preprocessing phase in network embedding, and construct the motifs enhanced network by incorporating enhanced motifs structures with the original network. By doing this, the embedding vectors from the motifs enhanced network can achieve better performance in downstream network analysis tasks. Extensive experiments are performed on two network analysis tasks (community detection and node classification) with synthetic and real-world datasets. The results show that our framework outperforms state-of-the-art network embedding methods.
Genomics and transcriptomics to protect rice (Oryza sativa. L.) from abiotic stressors: -pathways to achieving zero hunger
Authors: Ahmad Mushtaq
Published: October 2022

More over half of the world’s population depends on rice as a major food crop. Rice (Oryza sativaL.) is vulnerable to abiotic challenges including drought, cold, and salinity since it grown in semi-aquatic, tropical, or subtropical settings. Abiotic stress resistance has bred into rice plants since the earliest rice cultivation techniques. Prior to the discovery of the genome, abiotic stress-related genes were identified using forward genetic methods, and abiotic stress-tolerant lines have developed using traditional breeding methods. Dynamic transcriptome expression represents the degree of gene expression in a specific cell, tissue, or organ of an individual organism at a specific point in its growth and development. Transcriptomics can reveal the expression at the entire genome level during stressful conditions from the entire transcriptional level, which can be helpful in understanding the intricate regulatory network relating to the stress tolerance and adaptability of plants. Rice (Oryza sativaL.) gene families found comparatively using the reference genome sequences of other plant species, allowing for genome-wide identification. Transcriptomicsviagene expression profiling which have recently dominated by RNA-seq complements genomic techniques. The identification of numerous important qtl,s genes, promoter elements, transcription factors and miRNAs involved in rice response to abiotic stress was made possible by all of these genomic and transcriptomic techniques. The use of several genomes and transcriptome methodologies to comprehend rice (Oryza sativa, L.) ability to withstand abiotic stress have been discussed in this review
Proteomic analysis of T. qataranse exposed to lead (Pb) stress reveal new proteins with potential roles in Pb tolerance and detoxification mechanism
Authors: Usman Kamal , Souchelnytskyi Serhiy , Al-Ghouti Mohammad A. , Zouari Nabil , Abu-Dieyeh Mohammed H.
Published: October 2022

Soil lead (Pb) contamination is one of the environmental problems facing the modern world. Sources of Pb in soil include industrial activities such as mining and smelting processes, agricultural activities such as application of insecticide and municipal sewage sludges, and urban activities such as use of lead in gasoline, paints, and other materials. Phytoremediation is the direct use of living green plants and is an effective, cheap, non-invasive, and environmentally friendly technique used to transfer or stabilize all the toxic metals and environmental pollutants in polluted soil or groundwater. Current work in this area is invested in elucidating mechanisms that underpin toxic-metal tolerance and detoxification mechanisms. The present study aims to gain insight into the mechanisms of Pb tolerance in T. qataranse by comparative proteomics. MALDI-TOF/MS and in silico proteome analysis showed differential protein expression between treated (50 mg kg⎯1 Pb) and untreated (0 mg kg⎯1 Pb) T. qataranse. A total of eighty-six (86) differentially expressed proteins, most of which function in ion and protein binding, antioxidant activity, transport, and abiotic response stress, were identified. In addition, essential stress-regulating metabolic pathways, including glutathione metabolism, cellular response to stress, and regulation of HSF1-mediated heat shock response, were also enriched. Also, at 52- and 49-kDa MW band areas, up to six hypothetical proteins with unknown functions were identified. Of these, protein AXX17_AT2G26660 is highly rich in glycine amino acid residues (up to 76%), suggesting that it is a probable glycine-rich protein (GRP) member. Although GRPs are known to be involved in plant defense against abiotic stress, including salinity and drought, there is no report on their role on Pb tolerance and or detoxification in plants. Further enrichment analysis in the current study reveals that the hypothetical proteins do not interact with known proteins and are not part of any enriched pathway. However, additional research is needed to functionally validate the role of the identified proteins in Pb detoxification mechanism.