Differences in intracranial atherosclerosis plaque between posterior circulation and anterior circulation on high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: The clinical characteristics and mechanisms of stroke caused by anterior circulation atherosclerotic plaques (ACAPs) and posterior circulation atherosclerotic plaques (PCAPs) are distinct. We aimed to compare the differences in vulnerability, morphology, and distribution between ACAPs and PCAPs based on hign-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (HR-MRI). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Wanfang database were retrieved from inception through May 2023. Meta-analysis was performed by R 4.2.1 software. The quality of the literature was assessed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Subgroup analysis was conducted to explore the heterogeneity of the pooled results. RESULTS: There were a total of 13 articles, including 1194 ACAPs and 1037 PCAPs. The pooled estimates demonstrated that the incidence of intraplaque hemorrhage in the PCAPs was higher (OR 1.72, 95%CI 1.35-2.18). The plaque length (SMD 0.23, 95%CI 0.06-0.39) and remodeling index (SMD 0.29, 95%CI 0.14-0.44) of PCAPs were larger than those in ACAPs. However, there were no evident differences in significant enhancement or stenosis degree between the two groups. CONCLUSION: There were more unstable features in PCAPs, highlighting an elevated risk of recurrent ischemic stroke in the posterior circulation. Furthermore, PCAPs were prone to developing penetrating artery disease due to their wider distribution. Nevertheless, posterior circulation arteries exhibited a greater propensity for outward remodeling, which may lead treatment team to miss the optimal intervention stage by being overlooked on angiographic detection.

Generation of thioethers via direct C-H functionalization with sodium benzenesulfinate as a sulfur source.

A novel ammonium iodide-induced sulfenylation method of flavones, indole and arylimidazo[1,2-a]pyridines using stable and odorless sodium benzenesulfinates as sulfur sources was developed, generating regioselective derivatives in good yields. This method has enriched current thioether-producing methods and provided a good example of using ammonium iodide as a reaction inducer instead of iodine to make thioethers under environmentally friendly and odorless conditions.

Ammonium Iodide Induced Nonradical Regioselective Sulfenylation of Flavones via a C-H Functionalization Process.

A novel and highly regioselective ammonium iodide-induced nonradical sulfenylation method for the construction of a C-S bond was developed via C-H functionalization. With DMSO or R(1)SO2NHNH2 as a sulfenylating agent, MeS- and R(1)S-substituted flavone derivatives were obtained in good yields. This method enriches current C-S bond formation chemistry, making it a highly valuable and practical method in pharmaceutical industry.

Cascade couplings of N-alkyl-N-methacryloyl benzamides with ethers and benzenesulfonohydrazides to generate isoquinoline-1,3(2H,4H)-dione derivatives.

Two radical-mediated cascade couplings of N-alkyl-N-methacryloylbenzamides with different ethers and arylsulfonohydrazides to generate ether- and arylsulfonyl-substituted isoquinoline-1,3(2H,4H)-dione derivatives were developed. Both casccades proceeded via initially triggered functionalization of the alkene functions of the N-alkyl-N-methacryloylbenzamides, followed by ortho radical cyclizations onto the aromatic ring to give isoquinoline-1,3(2H,4H)-dione derivatives in good yields. These highly functionalized drug-like molecules will be valuable in drug discovery in the future.

Regioselective Cross-Couplings of Coumarins and Flavones with Ethers via C(sp(3))-H Functionalization.

Coumarin and flavone derivatives are highly valuable molecules in drug discovery. Here, two new regioselective cross-dehydrogenation couplings of coumarins and flavones with different ethers via C(sp(3))-H functionalization processes were developed, generating new ether-substituted derivatives not previously reported. These reactions proceeded well via radical mechanisms and provided the corresponding products in good yields.

A summary of seven- and eight-membered ring sultam syntheses via three Michael addition reactions.

A series of seven- and eight-membered ring -N,O-, -N,N-, and -N,S-sultams were effectively synthesized via tandem reactions involving oxa-, aza-, and thia-Michael addition to vinyl sulfonamides. These reactions are summarized here since they enrich current synthetic methodologies for sultams and provide a good example of sultam diversity-oriented synthesis. All reactions proceeded under relatively mild and environmentally friendly conditions, and all these reactions are quite suitable for the rapid preparation of sultam compound libraries, which are valuable for biological activity explorations.

Synthesis of isoquinoline-1,3(2H,4H)-dione derivatives via cascade reactions of N-alkyl-N-methacryloyl benzamide with aryl aldehydes.

A cascade reaction between N-alkyl-N-methacryloylbenzamide and aryl aldehydes was developed to generate isoquinoline-1,3(2H,4H)-dione derivatives. The reaction involves oxidative cross-coupling of the activated alkene from the N-alkyl-N-methacryloylbenzamide with the aldehyde functional group (-CHO), followed by radical addition to the aromatic ring to afford isoquinoline-1,3(2H,4H)-dione derivatives in good yields under mild reaction conditions without either metal catalysts or organic solvents involved.

High-security learning-based optical encryption assisted by disordered metasurface.

Artificial intelligence has gained significant attention for exploiting optical scattering for optical encryption. Conventional scattering media are inevitably influenced by instability or perturbations, and hence unsuitable for long-term scenarios. Additionally, the plaintext can be easily compromised due to the single channel within the medium and one-to-one mapping between input and output. To mitigate these issues, a stable spin-multiplexing disordered metasurface (DM) with numerous polarized transmission channels serves as the scattering medium, and a double-secure procedure with superposition of plaintext and security key achieves two-to-one mapping between input and output. In attack analysis, when the ciphertext, security key, and incident polarization are all correct, the plaintext can be decrypted. This system demonstrates excellent decryption efficiency over extended periods in noisy environments. The DM, functioning as an ultra-stable and active speckle generator, coupled with the double-secure approach, creates a highly secure speckle-based cryptosystem with immense potentials for practical applications.

Longitudinal Associations Between Serum Bilirubin Level and Carotid Atherosclerosis Plaque in a Health Screening Population.

This study aimed to determine the relationship between bilirubin levels and carotid atherosclerosis (CAS) in the health screening population. After propensity score matching, this retrospective cohort study included 4360 subjects who underwent health examinations regularly in Hebei General Hospital between January 2010 and December 2019 and had no carotid plaque at baseline. After an average follow-up of 26.76 months, the main endpoint Cox regression analysis of carotid plaques was performed. After adjusting the confounding factors, Cox regression analysis showed that when serum total bilirubin (TBIL) and unconjugated bilirubin (UCB) increased by 1 standard deviation (SD), the risk of carotid plaque decreased by 7.30% (95% confidence interval (CI): 2.80-11.60%) and 15.70% (95% CI: 11.40-19.80%), respectively. When conjugated bilirubin (CB) increased by 1 SD, the risk of carotid plaques increased by 24.3% (95% CI: 19.7-29.0%). TBIL and UCB levels were negatively associated with CAS, and CB levels were positively associated with CAS.

The construction of neurogenesis-related ceRNA network of ischemic stroke treated by oxymatrine.

BACKGROUND: Known as a disease associated with high mortality, disability and a significant financial burden, ischemic stroke ranks as one of the three diseases threatening human health. Recent advances in omics technology created opportunities to uncover the mechanism in ischemic stroke occurrence and treatment. In this study, we aimed to construct the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks of ischemic stroke treated by oxymatrine intervention. METHOD: The middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) mouse model of ischemic stroke was constructed, and oxymatrine was administered. Then RNA-Sequencing was performed and integrated analysis of mRNAs, lncRNAs and circRNAs was conducted to reveal the pharmacology of oxymatrine. Functional enrichment analysis was performed to explore the underlying mechanism of differentially expressed (DE) mRNAs. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of neurogenesis-related genes and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs)/circular RNAs (circRNAs) based ceRNA networks were constructed. RESULTS: First, this study revealed the DE-mRNAs, DE-lncRNAs and DE-circRNAs between Oxymatrine treated group and the MCAO group. Then, the common 1231 DE-mRNAs, 32 DE-lncRNAs and 31 DE-circRNAs with opposite trends were identified. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes to identify the functional enrichment of 1231 DE-mRNAs were enriched in neurogenesis-related biological processes. Based on neurogenesis-related DE-mRNAs, the PPI network was constructed, and hub genes were identified based on centrality. Finally, both the lncRNA-based and circRNAs-based ceRNA networks were constructed. CONCLUSION: In summary, this study identified novel coding and noncoding ischemic stroke targets of oxymatrine-treated MCAO. Most importantly, we identified lncRNAs and circRNAs candidates as potential oxymatrine targets and constructed the neurogenesis-related ceRNA networks.

Diversity-oriented syntheses: coupling reactions between electron-deficient olefins and aryl aldehydes via C(sp2)-H functionalization.

A diversity-oriented syntheses by coupling three electron-deficient olefins (vinyl sulfonamides, methacrylamides, and methyl acrylates, respectively) with aryl aldehydes via C(sp(2))-H functionalization were reported. These reactions gave four different skeletal products respectively under environment-friendly and mild conditions. All these reactions are highly regioselective and effective, very suitable for the preparation of synthetic building blocks and compound library, the results will enrich current coupling chemistry of olefins with aldehydes and can be applied to other chemistry areas as well.