Application of Permutation Entropy and Permutation Min-Entropy in Multiple Emotional States Analysis of RRI Time Series.

This study's aim was to apply permutation entropy (PE) and permutation min-entropy (PME) over an RR interval time series to quantify the changes in cardiac activity among multiple emotional states. Electrocardiogram (ECG) signals were recorded under six emotional states (neutral, happiness, sadness, anger, fear, and disgust) in 60 healthy subjects at a rate of 1000 Hz. For each emotional state, ECGs were recorded for 5 min and the RR interval time series was extracted from these ECGs. The obtained results confirm that PE and PME increase significantly during the emotional states of happiness, sadness, anger, and disgust. Both symbolic quantifiers also increase but not in a significant way for the emotional state of fear. Moreover, it is found that PME is more sensitive than PE for discriminating non-neutral from neutral emotional states.

Intermolecular hydrogen bonds between catechin and theanine in tea: slow release of the antioxidant capacity by a synergetic effect.

The health benefits of drinking tea stem from it being rich in polyphenols and other physiologically-active substances. Thus, exploring the synergistic effect between polyphenols and a variety of physiologically-active substances can contribute to our understanding of how tea benefits health. In this work, we have studied the interactions between catechin and theanine, exploring the synergetic antioxidant mechanism of the two molecules. Electrochemical characterization results showed that the oxidation peak current of catechin decreased gradually with the concentration of theanine, which is due to theanine spontaneously binding to catechin through intermolecular hydrogen bonds and forming molecular clusters via two hydrogen bonds. The binding constant is 4.75 at room temperature. The molecular clusters reduce the diffusion coefficient of catechin in solution, leading to the slow release of its antioxidant capacity (ability to effectively inhibit free radical oxidation reactions). Density functional theory calculations were also performed and verified the binding behavior. In identifying the synergistic effect between catechin and theanine on the antioxidant capacity of tea, this study adds to our understanding of the efficacy of tea polyphenols.

Proton-coupled electron transfer of catechin in tea wine: the enhanced mechanism of anti-oxidative capacity.

Tea wine is a Chinese traditional alcoholic drink made by cereal and tea leaves. It is rich in tea polyphenols, caffeine, amino acids, and protons and possesses various healthcare functions. In this work, electrochemical methods, as well as density functional theory (DFT) calculations, were adopted to reveal the proton-coupled electron-transfer process of catechin in tea wine. The electrochemical results showed that the catechin preferred hydrogen-bonding with ethanol and formed molecular clusters. Thus, the direct electron-transfer process of catechin changed to proton-coupled electron transfer. This procedure reduced the energy barrier of the redox reaction and enhanced the anti-oxidative capacity. Subsequently, DFT calculations were employed to explore the bond length, bond energy, and HOMO-LUMO energy gap of catechin, which confirmed the above-mentioned mechanism. Our work offers some positive value for the scientific promotion of traditional food and a greater understanding of the health mechanisms in terms of chemistry.

The Diagnostic Value of Conventional MRI and CT Features in the Identification of the IDH1-Mutant and 1p/19q Co-Deletion in WHO Grade II Gliomas.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: The classification of patients based on pathology and molecular features is important for improving WHO grade II glioma patient prognosis, especially for the initially diagnosed patients. Less invasive and more convenient methods for the prediction of the pathological type and gene status are desired. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study investigates the ability to use conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) features for determining the Isocitrate Dehydrogenase (IDH)-mutant and 1p/19q-codeletion status, through a retrospective review of information obtained from 189 WHO grade II glioma patients. Diffuse astrocytoma (IDH-mutant), Diffuse astrocytoma (IDH- wildtype) and Oligodendroglioma (IDH-mutant and 1p/19q co-deletion) were included in this cohort. All patients were divided into IDH-mutant group and IDH-wildtype group according to the IDH R132H mutation status. Moreover, all patients were divided into 1p/19q co-deletion group and 1p/19q non-codeletion group according to the 1p and 19q chromosome status. Patients underwent pre-operative CT and MRI scans, followed by operation and histopathological analyses, including immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reaction analysis for IDH mutants, and fluorescence capillary electrophoresis analysis for the 1p/19q co-deletion. The χ2 test, logistical regression and receiver operating characteristic curve analysis were conducted for statistical analysis. RESULTS: IDH-mutant group patients exhibited a higher calcification frequency (25.2% vs 2.4%, p = 0.006) and lower frequency of T1 enhancement (20.4% vs 38.1%, p = 0.028) comparing patients in IDH-wildtype group, while 1p/19q co-deletion group patients exhibited a higher calcification frequency (46.67% vs 2.6%, p < 0.001) and lower homogenous signal frequency in T2WI (12.0% vs 31.6%, p = 0.014), sharp lesion margins (14.7% vs 43.0%, p = 0.010), T2/fluid attenuated inversion recovery mismatch signs (22.7% vs 50.9%, p = 0.001), and subventricular zone involvement (64.0% vs 15.8%, p = 0.021) comparing patients in 1p/19q non-codeletion group. According to the results of receiver operating characteristic analysis, these features were observed to have certain diagnostic abilities, especially with regard to combination parameters, which had a high diagnostic capability, with an area under the curve of 0.848. CONCLUSION: Conventional MRI and CT features, which still represent the most convenient and widely used predictive method, might be a promising noninvasive predictor for differentiating between varied WHO grade II gliomas. Patients with calcification and T1 nonenhancement are more likely to be IDH-mutant. Moreover, patients with noncalcification, homogenous signal, sharp lesion margins, subventricular zone involvement on T2 and T2/fluid attenuated inversion recovery mismatch signs are more likely to be 1p/19q non-codeletion.

High-Field Intraoperative Magnetic Resonance Imaging Increases Extent of Resection and Progression-Free Survival for Nonfunctioning Pituitary Adenomas.

BACKGROUND: The effect of intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (iMRI) on tumor control during endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery (TSS) for nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas (NFPAs) has not yet been completely characterized. The present study assessed the effect of the iMRI findings on gross total resection (GTR) and progression-free survival at a mean follow-up of 62 ± 9.4 months. METHODS: Retrospective analyses were performed on the data from 133 consecutive patients with NFPA who had undergone endoscopic TSS with iMRI using a 1.5T scanner. RESULTS: Compared with the first and final iMRI scans, the GTR rate increased from 42.9% to 63.9%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that a lower GTR rate was associated with a higher Knosp score (odds ratio [OR], 3.612; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.568-8.321; P = 0.003), an increased tumor volume (OR, 0.926; 95% CI, 0.866-0.991; P = 0.025), and a history of surgery (OR, 0.376; 95% CI, 0.155-0.917; P = 0.031). During follow-up, 8 tumors (9.4%) recurred, and 29 remnants (60.4%) regenerated. The recurrence and regeneration rates were 0.019 and 0.121 patient/year, respectively. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that the tumor recurrence rates were lower for patients who had undergone GTR (P < 0.01) compared with those who had not. Univariate Cox regression analysis suggested that the presence of tumor remnants (hazard ratio, 1.546; 95% CI, 1.071-2.232; P = 0.02) was the influencing factor associated with tumor progression. CONCLUSIONS: High-field iMRI can increase the GTR rate in endoscopic TSS for NPFAs. The increased GTR rate was associated with longer progression-free survival. Cavernous sinus invasion, tumor size, and surgical history were important predictors of GTR in patients with NFPA.

Quantification of vascular function changes under different emotion states: A pilot study.

Recent studies have indicated that physiological parameters change with different emotion states. This study aimed to quantify the changes of vascular function at different emotion and sub-emotion states. Twenty young subjects were studied with their finger photoplethysmographic (PPG) pulses recorded at three distinct emotion states: natural (1 minute), happiness and sadness (10 minutes for each). Within the period of happiness and sadness emotion states, two sub-emotion states (calmness and outburst) were identified with the synchronously recorded videos. Reflection index (RI) and stiffness index (SI), two widely used indices of vascular function, were derived from the PPG pulses to quantify their differences between three emotion states, as well as between two sub-emotion states. The results showed that, when compared with the natural emotion, RI and SI decreased in both happiness and sadness emotions. The decreases in RI were significant for both happiness and sadness emotions (both P< 0.01), but the decreases in SI was only significant for sadness emotion (P< 0.01). Moreover, for comparing happiness and sadness emotions, there was significant difference in RI (P< 0.01), but not in SI (P= 0.9). In addition, significant larger RI values were observed with the outburst sub-emotion in comparison with the calmness one for both happiness and sadness emotions (both P< 0.01) whereas significant larger SI values were observed with the outburst sub-emotion only in sadness emotion (P< 0.05). Moreover, gender factor hardly influence the RI and SI results for all three emotion measurements. This pilot study confirmed that vascular function changes with diffenrt emotion states could be quantified by the simple PPG measurement.