Phase Behaviors and Photoresponsive Thin Films of Syndiotactic Side-Chain Liquid Crystalline Polymers with High Densely Substituted Azobenzene Mesogens.

Azobenzene-containing polymers (azopolymers) are a kind of fascinating stimuli-responsive materials with broad and versatile applications. In this work, a series of syndiotactic C1 type azopolymers of Pm-Azo-Cn with side-chain azobenzene mesogens of varied length alkoxy tails (n = 1, 4, 8, 10) and different length alkyl spacers (m = 6, 10) have been prepared via Rh-catalyzed carbene polymerization. The thermal properties and ordered assembly structures of thus synthesized side chain liquid crystalline polymers (SCLCPs) have been systematically investigated with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), polarized optical microscopy (POM) and variable-temperature small/wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS/WAXS) analyses. P10-Azo-C1 and P10-Azo-C4 with shorter alkoxy tails exhibited hierarchical structures SmB/Colob and transformed into SmA/Colob at a higher temperature, while P10-Azo-C8 and P10-Azo-C10 with longer alkoxy tails only displayed side group dominated layered SmB phase and transformed into SmA phase at higher temperatures. For P6-Azo-C4 with a shorter spacer only showed a less ordered SmA phase owing to interference by partly coupling between the side chain azobenzene mesogens and the helical backbone. More importantly, the series high densely substituted syndiotactic C1 azopolymer thin films, exhibited evidently and smoothly reversible photoresponsive properties, which demonstrated promising photoresponsive device applications.

Asiatic Acid Alleviates Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Myocardial Injury by Promoting Mitophagy and Regulating Mitochondrial Dynamics in Broilers.

Acute myocardial injury (AMI) induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) can cause cardiovascular dysfunction and lead to death in poultry. Traditional antibiotic therapy has been found to have many limitations and negative effects. Asiatic acid (AA) is a naturally occurring pentacyclic triterpenoid that is extracted from Centella asiatica and has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anticancer pharmacological properties. Previously, we studied the effect of AA on LPS-induced liver and kidney injury; however, the impact of AA on LPS-induced AMI remained unclear. Sixty 1-day-old broilers were randomly divided into control group, LPS group, LPS + AA 15 mg/kg group, LPS + AA 30 mg/kg group, LPS + AA 60 mg/kg group, and control + AA 60 mg/kg group. The histopathology of cardiac tissues was detected by hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. The mRNA and protein expressions related to mitochondrial dynamics and mitophagy were detected by quantitative real-time PCR, western blot, immunofluorescence, and immunohistochemistry. Disorganized myocardial cells and fractured myocardial fibers were found in the LPS group, and obvious red-blood-cell filling can be seen in the gaps between the myocardial fibers in the low-dose AA group. Nevertheless, the medium and high dose of AA obviously attenuated these changes. Our results showed that AA significantly restored the mRNA and protein expressions related to mitochondrial dynamic through further promoting mitophagy. This study revealed the effect of AA on LPS-induced AMI in broilers. Mechanically, AA regulated mitochondrial dynamic homeostasis and further promoted mitophagy. These novel findings indicate that AA may be a potential drug for LPS-induced AMI in broilers.

El ácido asiático como mitigante de las lesiones miocárdicas agudas inducidas por lipopolisacáridos al promover la mitofagia y regular la dinámica mitocondrial en pollos de engorde. La lesión miocárdica aguda (con siglas en inglés IAM) inducida por lipopolisacáridos (LPS) puede causar disfunción cardiovascular y provocar la muerte en las aves comerciales. Se ha descubierto que la terapia tradicional con antibióticos tiene muchas limitaciones y efectos negativos. El ácido asiático (AA) es un triterpenoide pentacíclico natural que se extrae de la planta Centella asiática y que tiene propiedades farmacológicas antiinflamatorias, antioxidantes y anticancerígenas. Anteriormente, se estudió el efecto del ácido asiático sobre la lesión hepática y renal inducida por lipopolisacáridos; sin embargo, el impacto del ácido asiático en las lesiones miocárdicas agudas inducidas por lipopolisacáridos continua sin estar completamente determinada. Sesenta pollos de engorde de un día de edad se dividieron aleatoriamente en los siguientes grupos experimentales: grupo control, grupo que recibió LPS solamente, grupo LPS + ácido asiático 15 mg/kg, grupo LPS + ácido asiático 30 mg/kg, grupo LPS + ácido asiático 60 mg/kg y control + ácido asiático 60 mg./kg grupo. La histopatología de los tejidos cardíacos se detectó mediante tinción con hematoxilina y eosina (H&E). Las expresiones de ARN mensajero y proteínas relacionadas con la dinámica mitocondrial y la mitofagia se detectaron mediante PCR cuantitativa en tiempo real, inmunotransferencia Western, inmunofluorescencia e inmunohistoquímica. Se encontraron células miocárdicas desorganizadas y fibras miocárdicas fracturadas en el grupo que recibió lipopolisacáridos, y se puede observar un evidente acúmulo de glóbulos rojos en los espacios entre las fibras miocárdicas en el grupo de dosis bajas de ácido asiático. Sin embargo, las dosis medias y altas de ácido asiático obviamente atenuaron estos cambios. Nuestros resultados mostraron que el ácido asiático restableció significativamente las expresiones de ARN mensajero y proteínas relacionadas con la dinámica mitocondrial mediante la promoción adicional de la mitofagia. Este estudio reveló el efecto del ácido asiático sobre las lesiones miocárdicas agudas inducidas por lipopolisacáridos en pollos de engorde. Basicamente, el ácido asiático reguló la homeostasis dinámica mitocondrial y promovió aún más la mitofagia. Estos nuevos hallazgos indican que el ácido asiático puede ser un fármaco potencial para mitigar lesiones miocárdicas agudas inducidas por lipopolisacáridos en pollos de engorde.

Polystyrene nanoplastics and cadmium co-exposure aggravated cardiomyocyte damage in mice by regulating PANoptosis pathway.

Micro/nanoplastics (M/NPs) are the novel contaminants ubiquitous in the environment. Cadmium (Cd), a kind of heavy metal pollutant widely distributed, could potentially co-exist with PS-NPs in the environment. However, their combined effects on cardiomyocyte and its molecular mechanism in mammals remained ambiguous. Here, we examined whether PANoptosis, an emerging and complicated kind of programmed cell death, was involved in PS-NPs and Cd co-exposure-elicited cardiac injury. In this study, 60 male mice were orally subjected to environmentally relevant concentrations of PS-NPs (1 mg/kg) and/or CdCl2 (1.5 mg/kg) for 35 days. As we speculated, PS-NPs and Cd co-exposure affected the expression of pyroptosis(Caspase-1, Cleaved-Caspase-1, GSDMD, N-GSDMD, AIM2, Pyrin, NLRP3, IL-18, IL-1ß)-, apoptosis(Caspase-3, Cleaved-Caspase-3, Caspase-8, Cleaved-Caspase-8, Caspase-7, BAX)- and necroptosis (t-RIPK3, p-RIPK3, t-RIPK1, p-RIPK1, t-MLKL, p-MLKL, ZBP1)-related genes and protein, resulting in growth restriction and damaged myocardial microstructure in mice. Notably, the combined effects on Cd and PS-NPs even predominantly aggravated the toxic damage. Intriguingly, we fortuitously discovered PS-NPs and/or Cd exposure facilitated linear ubiquitination of certain proteins in mice myocardium. In summation, this study shed light toward the effects of Cd and PS-NPs on cardiotoxicity, advanced the understanding of myocardial PANoptosis and provided a scientific foundation for further exploration of the combined toxicological effects of PS-NPs and heavy metals.

Tert-butylhydroquinone attenuates LPS-induced pyroptosis of IPEC-J2 cells via downregulating HMGB1/TLR4/NF-κB axis.

Inflammatory response induced by biological stress usually occurs in weaning piglets, it reduces the production performance of piglets and even causes death. Tert-butylhydroquinone (TBHQ) is a food additive that has the effect of anti-inflammation and anti-oxidation. However, there are few reports related to the protective mechanisms of TBHQ on lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced injury in intestinal porcine epithelial (IPEC-J2) cells. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis, respectively, detected the mRNA levels and protein expressions related to pyroptosis, tight junction (TJ) protein and high-mobility group box 1/toll-like receptor 4/nuclear factor kappa-B (HMGB1/TLR4/NF-κB) axis. Localisation and expression of NOD-like receptor pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3), HMGB1 and P-NF-κB proteins detected by immunofluorescence. The results showed that TBHQ (12.5 and 25 µM) can increase cell activity and reduce intracellular lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels in a dose-dependent manner. LPS significantly decreases cell viability and increases the LDH level. However, pretreatment with TBHQ evidently increases cell viability and decreases the LDH level of IPEC-J2 cells. In addition, treatment with LPS decreased the mRNA level and protein expression of zonula occludens-1, occludin and claudin-1, and increased the mRNA level and protein expression of pyroptosis and HMGB1/TLR4/NF-κB axis. Interestingly, pretreatment with TBHQ increased the TJ protein expressions as well as decreased the mRNA level and protein expressions of pyroptosis and HMGB1/TLR4/NF-κB axis. Moreover, the results of immunofluorescence showed that TBHQ significantly reduced the expression of NLRP3, HMGB1 and P-NF-κB in LPS-induced injury of IPEC-J2 cells. Therefore, we come to the conclusion that TBHQ attenuates LPS-induced pyroptosis in IPEC-J2 cells through downregulation of the HMGB1/TLR4/NF-κB axis, TBHQ may become a potential feed additive for preventing inflammatory diarrhoea in piglets.

N-acetylcysteine combined with insulin attenuates myocardial injury in canines with type 1 diabetes mellitus by modulating TNF-α-mediated apoptotic pathways and affecting linear ubiquitination.

The exact pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM) is still unclear. Numerous organs, including the heart, will suffer damage and malfunction as a result of long-term hyperglycemia. Currently, insulin therapy alone is still not the best treatment for type 1 DM. In order to properly treat and manage patients with type 1 DM, it is vital to seek a combination that includes both insulin and additional medications. This study aims to explore the therapeutic effect and mechanism of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) combined with insulin on type 1 DM. By giving beagle canines injections of streptozotocin (STZ) and alloxan (ALX) (20 mg/kg each), a model of type 1 DM was created. The results showed that this combination could effectively control blood sugar level, improve heart function, avoid the damage of mitochondria and myocardial cells, and prevent the excessive apoptosis of myocardial cells. Importantly, the combination can activate nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) by promoting linear ubiquitination of receptor-interacting protein kinase 1 (RIPK1) and NF-κB-essential modulator (NEMO) and inhibitor of NF-κB (IκB) phosphorylation. The combination can increase the transcription and linear ubiquitination of Cellular FLICE (FADD-like IL-1ß-converting enzyme) -inhibitory protein (c-FLIP), diminish the production of cleaved-caspase-8 p18 and cleaved-caspase-3 to reduce apoptosis. This study confirmed that NAC combined with insulin can promote the linear ubiquitination of RIPK1, NEMO and c-FLIP and regulate the apoptosis pathway mediated by TNF-α to attenuate the myocardial injury caused by type 1 DM. Meanwhile, the research served as a resource when choosing a clinical strategy for DM cardiac complications.

A protocol for tactile function assessment using JVP domes: Feasibility study and preliminary results.

BACKGROUND: Touch is a crucial sense for perceiving the spatial characteristics of objects. The JVP dome was developed to evaluate tactile spatial acuity using a grating orientation task. There were few studies depicting sequences and details for the entire task, including practice, training, and testing sessions. Therefore, we proposed and elaborated a protocol for the grating orientation task using the staircase method, which required fewer testing trials compared with the method of constant stimuli. METHODS: Twenty-three healthy participants were enrolled in this experiment. The JVP domes with 11 different groove widths were used. Tactile discrimination thresholds were estimated using a two-down-one-up staircase method. The experiment comprised practice, training, and testing sessions, conducted by trained examiners who performed grating stimulation on participants' index fingerpads. RESULTS: All participants passed the required accuracy in the practice and training sessions. Eight transition points were obtained in the testing session for each participant. The tactile discrimination thresholds were determined from the last six transition points. We obtained the mean tactile discrimination threshold as 1.8 ± 0.75 mm (n = 23). The results demonstrated that the proposed protocol was successfully applied to assess tactile discrimination thresholds. CONCLUSIONS: The present study investigated the protocol of grating orientation tasks requiring a small number of testing trials with the assurance of the task quality. The feasibility study and preliminary results indicated the potentiality of this protocol for future clinical application.

A Novel Tactile Function Assessment Using a Miniature Tactile Stimulator.

Several methods for the measurement of tactile acuity have been devised previously, but unexpected nonspatial cues and intensive manual skill requirements compromise measurement accuracy. Therefore, we must urgently develop an automated, accurate, and noninvasive method for assessing tactile acuity. The present study develops a novel method applying a robotic tactile stimulator to automatically measure tactile acuity that comprises eye-opened, eye-closed training, and testing sessions. Healthy participants judge the orientation of a rotating grating ball presented on their index fingerpads in a two-alternative forced-choice task. A variable rotation speed of 5, 10, 40, or 160 mm/s was used for the tactile measurement at a variety of difficulties. All participants met the passing criteria for the training experiment. Performance in orientation identification, quantified by the proportion of trials with correct answers, differed across scanning directions, with the highest rotation speed (160 mm/s) having the worst performance. Accuracy did not differ between vertical and horizontal orientations. Our results demonstrated the utility of the pre-test training protocol and the functionality of the developed procedure for tactile acuity assessment. The novel protocol performed well when applied to the participants. Future studies will be conducted to apply this method to patients with impairment of light touch.

Lyciumbarbarum polysaccharides ameliorate canine acute liver injury by reducing oxidative stress, protecting mitochondrial function, and regulating metabolic pathways. / 枸杞多糖通过降低氧化应激、保护线粒体功能和调节代谢途径改善犬急性肝损伤.

The development of acute liver injury can result in liver cirrhosis, liver failure, and even liver cancer, yet there is currently no effective therapy for it. The purpose of this study was to investigate the protective effect and therapeutic mechanism of Lyciumbarbarum polysaccharides (LBPs) on acute liver injury induced by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). To create a model of acute liver injury, experimental canines received an intraperitoneal injection of 1 mL/kg of CCl4 solution. The experimental canines in the therapy group were then fed LBPs (20 mg/kg). CCl4-induced liver structural damage, excessive fibrosis, and reduced mitochondrial density were all improved by LBPs, according to microstructure data. By suppressing Kelch-like epichlorohydrin (ECH)-associated protein 1 (Keap1), promoting the production of sequestosome 1 (SQSTM1)/p62, nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), and phase II detoxification genes and proteins downstream of Nrf2, and restoring the activity of anti-oxidant enzymes like catalase (CAT), LBPs can restore and increase the antioxidant capacity of liver. To lessen mitochondrial damage, LBPs can also enhance mitochondrial respiration, raise tissue adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels, and reactivate the respiratory chain complexes I‒V. According to serum metabolomics, the therapeutic impact of LBPs on acute liver damage is accomplished mostly by controlling the pathways to lipid metabolism. 9-Hydroxyoctadecadienoic acid (9-HODE), lysophosphatidylcholine (LysoPC/LPC), and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) may be potential indicators of acute liver injury. This study confirmed that LBPs, an effective hepatoprotective drug, may cure acute liver injury by lowering oxidative stress, repairing mitochondrial damage, and regulating metabolic pathways.

Synergic Effect of Robot-Assisted Rehabilitation and Antispasticity Therapy: A Narrative Review.

BACKGROUND: Stroke and spinal cord injury are neurological disorders that cause disability and exert tremendous social and economic effects. Robot-assisted training (RAT), which may reduce spasticity, is widely applied in neurorehabilitation. The combined effects of RAT and antispasticity therapies, such as botulinum toxin A injection therapy, on functional recovery remain unclear. This review evaluated the effects of combined therapy on functional recovery and spasticity reduction. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Studies evaluating the efficacy of RAT and antispasticity therapy in promoting functional recovery and reducing spasticity were systemically reviewed. Five randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included. The modified Jadad scale was applied for quality assessment. Functional assessments, such as the Berg Balance Scale, were used to measure the primary outcome. Spasticity assessments, such as the modified Ashworth Scale, were used to measure the secondary outcome. RESULTS: Combined therapy improves functional recovery in the lower limbs but does not reduce spasticity in the upper or lower limbs. CONCLUSIONS: The evidence supports that combined therapy improves lower limb function but does not reduce spasticity. The considerable risk of bias among the included studies and the enrolled patients who did not receive interventions within the golden period of intervention are two major factors that should be considered when interpreting these results. Additional high-quality RCTs are required.

Bilateral Sensorimotor Cortical Communication Modulated by Multiple Hand Training in Stroke Participants: A Single Training Session Pilot Study.

Bi-manual therapy (BT), mirror therapy (MT), and robot-assisted rehabilitation have been conducted in hand training in a wide range of stages in stroke patients; however, the mechanisms of action during training remain unclear. In the present study, participants performed hand tasks under different intervention conditions to study bilateral sensorimotor cortical communication, and EEG was recorded. A multifactorial design of the experiment was used with the factors of manipulating objects (O), robot-assisted bimanual training (RT), and MT. The sum of spectral coherence was applied to analyze the C3 and C4 signals to measure the level of bilateral corticocortical communication. We included stroke patients with onset <6 months (n = 6), between 6 months and 1 year (n = 14), and onset >1 year (n = 20), and their Brunnstrom recovery stage ranged from 2 to 4. The results showed that stroke duration might influence the effects of hand rehabilitation in bilateral cortical corticocortical communication with significant main effects under different conditions in the alpha and beta bands. Therefore, stroke duration may influence the effects of hand rehabilitation on interhemispheric coherence.

Asiatic acid alleviates LPS-induced acute kidney injury in broilers by inhibiting oxidative stress and ferroptosis via activation of the Nrf2 pathway.

Asiatic acid (AA), a triterpenoid compound isolated from Centella asiatica, has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anticancer biological characteristics. To explore the effect of AA on LPS-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) in broilers, a total of 60 one-day-old broilers were randomly divided into 6 groups, including the normal group, AKI model group, AKI + AA 15 mg/kg group, AKI + AA 30 mg/kg group, AKI + AA 60 mg/kg group and normal + AA 60 mg/kg group. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was used to observe the histopathology in kidney tissue, and the mRNA and protein expressions related to oxidative stress and ferroptosis were tested by qPCR and western blotting respectively. AA mitigated vacuolar degeneration and enlarged glomerular space caused by LPS in kidney tissue. Additionally, AA significantly increased the mRNA levels of Nrf2, HO-1, NQO1, GCLC, GCLM, GPX4, SLC7A11 and FTH1, and decreased the mRNA levels of Keap1 and PTGS2 in LPS-induced AKI. Likewise, AA significantly upregulated the protein expressions of Nrf2, HO-1, NQO1, GPX4, SLC7A11 and FTH1, and downregulated the protein expressions of Keap1 and PTGS2 in LPS-induced AKI. These results suggested that AA alleviated LPS-induced AKI by inhibiting oxidative stress and ferroptosis through targeting regulation of the Nrf2 pathway in broilers.

Facile Synthesis of Liquid Crystal Dimers Bridged with a Phosphonic Group.

Liquid crystal (LC) dimers with well-defined composition and structure arouse broad attentions for their exhibiting LC properties beyond conventional low molar mass mesogens and serving as fascinating model compounds for LC polymers. Here in this work, a series of LC dimers bridged with a phosphonic group have been synthesized through a facile free radical mediated addition reaction between hypophosphorous acid and vinyl terminated cyanobiphenyl mesogens with variant length alkyl spacers. In addition, two esterified derivatives and a group of mono-addition homologues with a terminal phosphonic acid group have also been prepared for comparison study. All the newly synthesized compounds exhibit monotropic nematic (N) phase with typical schlieren textures except for the LC dimer with the longest eleven-methylene spacer, which surprisingly shows twist-bend nematic (NTB ) phase directly from the isotropic state upon cooling. Moreover, the thermal transition properties such as the nematic-isotropic transition temperatures and associated entropy changes of the series LC dimers display a modest odd-even effect. Furthermore, both the LC dimers and the mono-addition homologues in N phase are quite easy to achieve homeotropic alignment upon annealing thanks to the supramolecular interactions between the introduced phosphonic acid group and the hydroxylated glass surface. This work thus provides a novel synthesis strategy for a class of LC materials bridged with a phosphonic acid group prone to further functionalization, which may serve as promising vertical alignment agents and pave the way for developing a new kind of functionalized LC materials of NTB phase.

Repeated Low-Dose Streptozotocin and Alloxan Induced Long-Term and Stable Type 1 Diabetes Model in Beagle Dogs.

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is a chronic disease represented by insulin-causing pancreatic ß-cell disruption and hyperglycemia. Therefore, it is necessary to establish a variety of animal models of diabetes to study the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of it. However, there are few reports on the use of beagle dogs to establish an animal model of type 1 diabetes. This study aimed to explore a simple and feasible modeling method to establish a long-term and stable type 1 diabetes model in beagle dogs. Forty adult beagle dogs were randomly divided into control group and model group. After 24 h of fasting, streptozotocin (20 mg/kg) and alloxan (20 mg/kg) were injected through the cephalic vein. The second intravenous injection was given on the 4th day after the first injection. Insulin release testing was performed on the 7th day after the last intravenous injection. Fasting blood glucose and body weight were recorded monthly. Four months after the last injection, the serum fructosamine content and the ratio of glycated hemoglobin were detected. Then, the pancreatic tissue was harvested for histopathological examination. The results showed that the level of fasting blood glucose of the 16 dogs in the model group was consistently higher than 11.1 mmol/L for 4 consecutive months. Moreover, compared with the control group, the insulin release curve of the model group was flat with no increase. The body weight of the model group was significantly reduced, and the ratios of blood glucose, fructosamine, and glycosylated hemoglobin were significantly higher than those in the control group. Meanwhile, histopathological examination of the pancreas showed that the islet beta cells appeared to have vacuoles or even necrosis. In the model group, pancreatic ß-cells were damaged and insulin release was reduced. These results suggest that the above modeling methods can induce long-term and stable type 1 diabetes models in beagle dogs.

Robot-Assisted Bimanual Training Improves Hand Function in Patients With Subacute Stroke: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study.

Study Design: A randomized controlled pilot study. Background: Bimanual therapy (BMT) is an effective neurorehabilitation therapy for the upper limb, but its application to the distal upper limb is limited due to methodological difficulties. Therefore, we applied an exoskeleton hand to perform robot-assisted task-oriented bimanual training (RBMT) in patients with stroke. Objective: To characterize the effectiveness of RBMT in patients with hemiplegic stroke with upper limb motor impairment. Interventions: A total of 19 patients with subacute stroke (1-6 months from onset) were randomized and allocated to RBMT and conventional therapy (CT) groups. The RBMT and CT groups received 90 min of training/day (RBMT: 60 min RBMT + 30 min CT; CT: 60 min CT for hand functional training + 30 min regular CT), 5 days/week, for 4 weeks (20 sessions during the experimental period). Assessments: Clinical assessments, including the Fugl-Meyer assessment of the upper extremity (FMA-UE), action research arm test (ARAT), and wolf motor arm function test (WMFT), were conducted before and after the intervention. Results: Within-group analysis showed a significant improvement in the FMA-UE and WMFT in both the CT and RBMT groups. A significant improvement in the Fugl-Meyer assessment (FMA) of the wrist and hand for the distal part in the RBMT group occurred earlier than that in the CT group. A significant improvement in WMFT time was found in both groups, but the WMFT functional ability assessment was only found in the RBMT group. No significant improvements in ARAT assessment were observed in either the CT or RBMT groups. Compared with CT, significant improvements were found in terms of the proportion of minimally clinically important differences after RBMT in FMA-UE (χ2 = 4.34, p = 0.037). No adverse events were reported by any of the participants across all sessions. Conclusions: This study is the first to apply RBMT to the distal part of the upper limb. Both RBMT and CT are effective in improving the upper limb function in patients with subacute stroke. RBMT shows superior potential efficacy in facilitating recovery of the distal part of upper extremity (UE) motor function in the early stage. Future randomized control studies with a large sample size and follow-up assessments are needed to validate the present conclusions.

Simultaneous Realization of Superoleophobicity and Strong Substrate Adhesion in Water via a Unique Segment Orientation Mechanism.

The underwater superoleophobicity of a coating is often caused by its preferential water affinity, which, however, normally weakens the substrate adhesion property. In this work, a new strategy is reported for achieving strong underwater adhesion between a well-designed amphiphilic polyurethane coating and a diverse range of substrates while also rendering the coating surface's superoleophobicity. When the coating, which is a mixture of an amphiphilic polyurethane and a water miscible solvent, is immersed in water, the hydrophobic segments aggregate to orientate and pile along the surface of substrates via a segment orientation mechanism triggered by solvent exchange with water penetration to exert strong adhesion. At the same time, the hydrophilic segments will physically crosslink to form a hydrogel coating, endowing the substrate with underwater superoleophobicity. This work provides a facile, versatile, and scalable approach for the future design of superoleophobic coatings in a water environment.

Alternation of Neuronal Feature Selectivity Induced by Paired Optogenetic-Mechanical Stimulation in the Barrel Cortex.

Paired stimulation has been applied to modulate neuronal functions in the primary somatosensory cortex but its utility in the alternation of tuning function, such as direction tuning for whisker stimuli, remains unclear. In the present study, we attempted to manipulate feature preferences in barrel cortical neurons using repetitive paired whisker deflection combined with optogenetic stimulation and to obtain optimal parameters that can induce neuroplasticity. We found no significant response changes across stimulus parameters, such as onset asynchronies and paired directions. Only when paired stimulation was applied in the nonpreferred direction of the principal whisker of a neuron, were the neuron's responses enhanced in that direction. Importantly, this effect was only observed when the optogenetic stimulus preceded the mechanical stimulus. Our findings indicate that repetitive paired optogenetic-mechanical stimulation can induce in vivo neuroplasticity of feature selectivity in limited situations.

Molecular Understanding and Design of Porous Polyurethane Hydrogels with Ultralow-Oil-Adhesion for Oil-Water Separation.

Materials with opposite affinities toward oil and water have been extensively used to coat porous substrates for oil-water separation, but the applications of these materials have been limited by the need for complex coating processes as well as the short-term adherence of these materials onto different substrates under extreme conditions. As reported herein, the robust porous polyurethane hydrogel has been theoretically and structurally designed with ultralow-oil-adhesion properties which is free stand without depending on additional substrates. The combination of superhydrophilic properties along with the underwater superoleophobic behavior of this porous hydrogel allows gravity driven separations of oil-water mixtures, and its antiadhesion performance toward oil prevents undesirable oily fouling. The underwater superoleophobic properties were also illustrated by molecular dynamics simulation to understand the resisting effect of hydrated layers. The as-prepared porous hydrogel shows ultrahigh oil-water separation efficiencies of 99.9% for various oil-water mixtures, ranging from those containing viscous oils (pump oil and peanut oil) to organic solvents (n-hexane, n-hexadecane, and toluene). In addition, this hydrogel is durable even with exposure to various harsh conditions including acidic and basic media (pH 0-14) as well as exposure to mechanical abrasion. We believe that the combination of facile preparation, substrate independence, gravity driven separation, antifouling properties, high durability, as well as the outstanding separation flux and efficiency of this robust porous hydrogel will help to advance the design and application of materials in oil-water separation fields.

Author Correction: Relative posture between head and finger determines perceived tactile direction of motion.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Relative posture between head and finger determines perceived tactile direction of motion.

The hand explores the environment for obtaining tactile information that can be fruitfully integrated with other functions, such as vision, audition, and movement. In theory, somatosensory signals gathered by the hand are accurately mapped in the world-centered (allocentric) reference frame such that the multi-modal information signals, whether visual-tactile or motor-tactile, are perfectly aligned. However, an accumulating body of evidence indicates that the perceived tactile orientation or direction is inaccurate; yielding a surprisingly large perceptual bias. To investigate such perceptual bias, this study presented tactile motion stimuli to healthy adult participants in a variety of finger and head postures, and requested the participants to report the perceived direction of motion mapped on a video screen placed on the frontoparallel plane in front of the eyes. Experimental results showed that the perceptual bias could be divided into systematic and nonsystematic biases. Systematic bias, defined as the mean difference between the perceived and veridical directions, correlated linearly with the relative posture between the finger and the head. By contrast, nonsystematic bias, defined as minor difference in bias for different stimulus directions, was highly individualized, phase-locked to stimulus orientation presented on the skin. Overall, the present findings on systematic bias indicate that the transformation bias among the reference frames is dominated by the finger-to-head posture. Moreover, the highly individualized nature of nonsystematic bias reflects how information is obtained by the orientation-selective units in the S1 cortex.

Illusory Motion Reversal in Touch.

Psychophysical visual experiments have shown illusory motion reversal (IMR), in which the perceived direction of motion is the opposite of its actual direction. The tactile form of this illusion has also been reported. However, it remains unclear which stimulus characteristics affect the magnitude of IMR. We closely examined the effect of stimulus characteristics on IMR by presenting moving sinusoid gratings and random-dot patterns to 10 participants' fingerpads at different spatial periods, speeds, and indentation depths. All participants perceived a motion direction opposite to the veridical direction some of the time. The illusion was more prevalent at spatial periods of 1 and 2 mm and at extreme speeds of 20 and 320 mm/s. We observed stronger IMR for gratings and much weaker IMR for a random-dot pattern, indicating that edge orientation might be a major contributor to this illusion. These results show that the optimal parameters for IMR are consistent with the characteristics of motion-selective neurons in the somatosensory cortex, as most of these neurons are also orientation-selective. We speculate that these neurons could be the neural substrate that accounts for tactile IMR.