Neuroglobin and Nogo-a as biomarkers for the severity and prognosis of traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the early changes of serum neuroglobin and Nogo-A concentrations and the relations to traumatic brain injury (TBI) severity and prognosis. METHODS: Serum samples were obtained and analyzed from 34 patients with TBI within the first 96 h after injury. Comparative analysis combined with Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores and the 6-month prognosis of these patients was performed. RESULTS: Significant correlations were found between peak serum neuroglobin and Nogo-A concentrations and a patient's GCS score on admission (p < 0.001). The mean peak serum neuroglobin and Nogo-A concentrations were both significantly higher in patients with an unfavorable outcome at 6 months after injury (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Serum neuroglobin and Nogo-A levels could be suggested as biomarkers for predicting TBI severity and prognosis.

miR-181b promotes angiogenesis and neurological function recovery after ischemic stroke.

Promotion of new blood vessel formation is a new strategy for treating ischemic stroke. Non-coding miRNAs have been recently considered potential therapeutic targets for ischemic stroke. miR-181b has been shown to promote angiogenesis in hypoxia and traumatic brain injury model, while its effect on ischemic stroke remains elusive. In this study, we found that overexpression of miR-181b in brain microvascular endothelial cells subjected to oxygen-glucose deprivation in vitro restored cell proliferation and enhanced angiogenesis. In rat models of focal cerebral ischemia, overexpression of miR-181b reduced infarction volume, promoted angiogenesis in ischemic penumbra, and improved neurological function. We further investigated the molecular mechanism by which miR-181b participates in angiogenesis after ischemic stroke and found that miR-181b directly bound to the 3'-UTR of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) mRNA to induce PTEN downregulation, leading to activation of the protein kinase B (Akt) pathway, upregulated expression of vascular endothelial growth factors, down-regulated expression of endostatin, and promoted angiogenesis. Taken together, these results indicate that exogenous miR-181b exhibits neuroprotective effects on ischemic stroke through activating the PTEN/Akt signal pathway and promoting angiogenesis.

Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor, a potential candidate for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.

BACKGROUND: Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) activates the PI3K/Akt pathway to exert neuroprotective effects. The current study aimed to determine if G-CSF reverses behavioral deficits, even after motor malfunction occurs in Paraquat (PQ)-treated mice. METHODS: Male C57BL/6 mice (8 weeks old) were divided into 3 groups: PQ + G-CSF-treated group (n=8); PQ + saline-treated group (n=8); and saline-treated control group (n=8). Spontaneous locomotor activity was evaluated together with the pole test. The DA, 3, 4-dihydroxyphenyl acetic acid (DOPAC), and homovanillic acid (HVA) levels in the bilateral striatum were determined by HPLC. The number of substantia nigra pars compacta tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)-immunoreactive neurons was calculated using an unbiased cell counting stereology method, the activities of total GSH-PX and SOD, and the malondialdehyde (MDA) content were assessed. RESULTS: After G-CSF treatment, spontaneous motor activity and the Tturn and TLA times in the CSF group were significantly lower than the control group, and the striatal dopamine level in the striatum and the number of TH-positive neurons in the substantia nigra (SN) were significantly increased compared to the control group (5478 ± 654 vs. 3647±488 DA neurons, P < 0.05). Compared to the control group, the GSH-PX and SOD activities were increased, while the MDA level was significantly decreased in the SN (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The data strongly suggest that G-CSF reverses behavioral deficits in PQ-treated mice with movement disorders. Thus, G-CSF may be utilized as a prospective drug candidate for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.

[Bacillus amyloliquefaciens Biofertilizer Mitigating Soil Ammonia Volatilization].

In this study, we investigated the effectiveness and microbial mechanism of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofertilizer on reducing ammonia volatilization in farmland soil. Pot experiments were carried out to explore the effects of B. amyloliquefaciens biofertilizer (BB) and chemical fertilizer on soil ammonia volatilization, crop yield and quality, and soil microbial community. Four fertilization strategies were tested, namely no fertilizer (CK), 100% chemical fertilizer (C), 50% BB and 50% chemical fertilizer (B1), and 100% BB (B2). The dynamic flow-through chamber method was used to determine the soil ammonia volatilization flux after fertilization. The soil bacterial community during the peak period of ammonia volatilization was analyzed using 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing. The results showed that the amount of ammonia volatilization in B1 and B2 decreased by 79.5% and 84.8%, respectively, as compared with treatment C. B2 had the lowest nitrate content and the highest yield; the yield of B2 increased by 50.5% and 12.3% as compared to that of CK and C, respectively. B1 had the highest content of vitamin C, which was 67.6 mg ·kg-1. The application of BB improved the diversity and richness of soil bacterial community, especially the relative abundance of Bacillus and Nitrospira. This shows that BB plays an important role in preventing air pollution and improving nitrogen utilization.

[Initial research of customized aberration correction with adaptive optics technique].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the effects of different wavefront-guided aberration ablation patterns on visual function using adaptive optics technique and explore the effective and feasible pattern of customized refractive surgery. METHODS: Control study. Under dark condition, six volunteers'right eyes were fully dilated with 5 g/L phenyl ephedrine. The myopia and astigmatism were first fully corrected with optical lens, and then 100% contrast visual acuity of different wavefront correction patterns was detected using adaptive optics system in through a 6.0 mm pupil optical path. RESULTS: All of the eight different aberration correction strategies obtained excellent correction effect. On the basis of this correction, visual acuity test was performed. The results showed that all aberration correction strategies improved the visual acuity compared with static correction. Correction of high order aberrations and full correction of aberrations could obtain better visual acuity than that of only correction of low order aberrations. Correction of aberrations from second to third order and fourth order spherical aberration second only to full correction of aberration. CONCLUSION: As for low myopia patients, eliminating ocular high order aberrations could improve visual acuity. Correction of aberration from second to third order and fourth spherical aberration might be an effective and feasible pattern of customized refractive surgery.

Efficacy and safety comparison of DL-3-n-butylphthalide and Cerebrolysin: Effects on neurological and behavioral outcomes in acute ischemic stroke.

Cerebrolysin and DL-3-n-butylphthalide (NBP) have each shown neuroprotective efficacy in preclinical models of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) and passed clinical trials as therapeutic drugs for AIS. The present study was a clinical trial to assess and compare the efficacy and safety of NBP and Cerebrolysin in the reduction of neurological and behavioral disability following AIS. A randomized, double-blind trial was conducted with enrolment of 60 patients within 12 h of AIS. In addition to routine treatment, patients were randomly assigned to receive a 10-day intravenous administration of NBP, Cerebrolysin or placebo. National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and Barthel Index (BI) scores were used to evaluate the efficacy of the treatment in the patients with AIS at 11 and 21 days after the initiation of therapy. Adverse events were also analyzed among the three groups. After 10 days of treatment with NBP or Cerebrolysin, the NIHSS and BI scores at day 21 showed statistical differences compared with those in the placebo group (P<0.05). The improvements of NIHSS and BI scores in the NBP and Cerebrolysin groups were higher than those in the placebo group at days 11 and 21 (P<0.05). A statistically significant difference in the improvement of 21-day NIHSS scores was observed between the two treatment groups (P<0.05). No significant difference was found among the three groups with regard to the rate of adverse events. Favorable outcomes and good safety were observed in the patients with moderate AIS treated with NBP or Cerebrolysin. The results indicate that NBP may be more effective than Cerebrolysin in improving short-term outcomes following AIS. This trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov with clinical trial identifier number NCT02149875.

Endostatin/collagen XVIII is increased in cerebrospinal fluid after severe traumatic brain injury.

Recent studies have suggested that endogenous angiogenesis inhibitor endostatin/collagen XVIII might play an important role in the secondary brain injury following traumatic brain injury (TBI). In this study, we measured endostatin/collagen XVIII concentrations serially for 1 week after hospitalization by using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 30 patients with TBI and a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of 8 or less on admission. There was a significant trend toward increased CSF levels of endostatin after TBI versus control from 72 h after injury. In patients with GCS score of 3-5, CSF endostatin concentration was substantially higher at 72 h after injury than that in patients with GCS score of 6-8 (P < 0.05) and peaked rapidly at day 5 after injury, but decreased thereafter. The CSF endostatin concentration in 12 patients with an unfavorable outcome was significantly higher than that in 18 patients with a favorable outcome at day 5 (P = 0.043) and day 7 (P = 0.005) after trauma. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis suggested a reliable operating point for the 7-day CSF endostatin concentration predicting poor prognosis to be 67.29 pg/mL. Our preliminary findings provide new evidence that endostatin/collagen XVIII concentration in the CSF increases substantially in patients with sTBI. Its dynamic change may have some clinical significance on the judgment of brain injury severity and the assessment of prognosis. This trial is registered with the ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01846546.

The influence of hemocoagulation disorders on the development of posttraumatic cerebral infarction and outcome in patients with moderate or severe head trauma.

Posttraumatic cerebral infarction (PTCI) is a severe secondary insult of head injury and often leads to a poor prognosis. Hemocoagulation disorder is recognized to have important effects on hemorrhagic or ischemic damages. We sought to assess if posttraumatic hemocoagulation disorders were associated with cerebral infarction, and evaluate their influence on outcome among patients with moderate or severe head trauma. In this study, PTCI was observed in 28 (10.57%) of the 265 patients within the first week after injury. In multivariate analysis, the thrombocytopenia (odds ratio (OR) 2.210, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.065-4.674), abnormal prothrombin time (PT) (OR 3.241, 95% CI 1.090-7.648), D-dimer (>2 mg/L) (OR 7.260, 95% CI 1.822-28.076), or disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) scores (≥ 5) (OR 4.717, 95% CI 1.778-12.517) were each independently associated with an increased risk of PTCI. Admission Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score, abnormal activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) and fibrinogen, and D-dimer (>2 mg/L) and DIC scores (≥ 5) showed an independent predictive effect on poor outcome. In conclusion, recognition of this important treatable cause of PTCI and the associated risk factors may help identify the group at risk and tailor management of patients with TBI.