Synthetic MRI to Assess Neurological Injury in Recovered COVID-19 Patients / 中山大学学报(医学科学版)

ObjectiveTo assess the microstructural involvement of gray matter in recovered COVID-19 patients using Synthetic MRI. MethodsThis study was conducted in 29 recovered COVID-19 patients， including severe group （SG， n=11） and ordinary group （OG， n=18）. Healthy volunteers matched by age， sex， BMI and years of education were selected as a healthy control group （HC=23 cases）. Each subject underwent synthetic MRI to generate quantitative T1 and T2 maps， and the T1 and T2 maps were segmented into 90 regions of interest （ROIs） using automatic anatomical labeling （AAL） mapping. T1 and T2 values for each ROI were obtained by averaging all voxels within the ROIs. The T1 and T2 values of the 90 brain regions between the three groups were compared. ResultsRelative to HC， the SG had significantly higher T2 values in bilateral orbital superior frontal gyrus， bilateral parahippocampal gyrus， bilateral putamen， bilateral middle temporal gyrus， bilateral Inferior temporal gyrus， left orbital superior frontal gyrus， left orbital inferior frontal gyrus， left gyrus rectus， left anterior cingulate and paracingulate gyri， right median cingulate and paracingulate gyri， left posterior cingulate gyrus， and left supramarginal gyrus （P＜0.05）； Relative to OG， SG showed significantly increased T2 values in the left rectus gyrus， left parahippocampal gyrus， bilateral middle temporal gyrus， and bilateral inferior temporal gyrus （P＜0.05）. Relative to HC， the T1 values of SG were significantly increased in bilateral orbital superior frontal gyrus， left rectus gyrus， left anterior cingulate and paracingulate gyri， right posterior cingulate gyrus， left parahippocampal gyrus， left lingual gyrus， left putamen， left thalamus（P＜0.05）； Relative to OG， the T1 values of SG were significantly higher in the right posterior cingulate gyrus， right calcarine fissure and surrounding cortex， and left putamen （P＜0.05）. ConclusionsEven after recovering from COVID-19， patients may still have persistent or delayed damage to their brain gray matter structure， which is correlated with the severity of the condition. SyMRI can serve as a sensitive tool to assess the extent of microstructural damage to the central nervous system， aiding in early diagnosis of the disease.

Monitoring changes of anterior patellar tendon in amateur marathon athletes using ultra-short echo time magnetization transfer technology / 中华放射学杂志

Objective:To explore the value of ultra-short echo time magnetization transfer (UTE-MT) techniques for quantitatively dynamic monitoring of anterior patellar tendon (patellar tendon, quadriceps tendon) changes in amateur marathon runners before and after competition.Methods:Between October 2020 and January 2021, 23 amateur marathoners in Zhuhai, aged 28-50 (40±6) years, were prospectively recruited. Three-dimensional UTE-MT and dual-echo UTE-T 2* sequence scans of bilateral knee joints were performed before, 48 hours and 4 weeks after the marathon running, respectively. Another 5 non-running volunteers were recruited for verification of sequence stability. UTE-magnetization transfer ratio (MTR) and UTE-T 2* value of the patellar tendon, quadriceps tendon, and 3 tendon-bone insertion points (patellar tendon-tibial insertion point, patellar tendon-patellar insertion point, and quadriceps tendon-patellar insertion point) were measured independently on sagittal images of the knee joint by 2 radiologists. The stability of the 2 serial measurements and consistency tests between the 2 radiologists were assessed with a two-way mixed intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to compare the differences in UTE-MTR and UTE-T 2* values of the prepatellar tendon before and after the marathon running. Results:Both UTE-MT and dual-echo UTE-T 2* sequence measurements had good stability, with ICC values of 0.98 and 0.92, respectively. Measurements of UTE-MTR and UTE-T 2* value of the patellar tendon, quadriceps tendon, and the 3 tendon-bone insertion points by the 2 radiologists were in good agreement (ICC>0.80). Forty-eight hours after the marathon running, the UTE-MTR of the patellar tendon, quadriceps tendon, and the 3 tendon-bone insertion points decreased, and UTE-MTR of the patellar tendon continued to decrease 4 weeks after the race, while UTE-MTR of other regions increased. Only the difference in UTE-MTR for the patellar tendon was statistically significant ( F=7.46, P=0.001) among pre-marathon (0.34±0.04), 48 h after the race (0.32±0.04), and 4 weeks after the race (0.31±0.04). UTE-T 2* value was mildly elevated in all regions at 48 h after the marathon running, but the differences among the three points were not statistically significant ( P>0.05). Conclusion:The UTE-MT has better reproducibility and inter-rater reliability. The UTE-MT can be used to monitor the dynamic changes of the prepatellar tendon before and after marathon exercise, where the UTE-MTR of the patellar tendon consistently decreases after marathon exercise.

Fetal programming: research status and reversal of intergenerational obesity caused by maternal obesity / 中华内分泌代谢杂志

Fetal programming refers to as the process that organ structures and related functions undergo programming at the embryo and fetus phase. Any stimulus and injuries during embryo and fetal development can lead to changes in multiple fetal organs. Among them, maternal obesity is an important factor. This work reviews the data from recent animal models and human regarding the effects of maternal obesity on fetal programming, with a particular focus on the mechanisms and reversal strategies.

Monitoring changes of knee in amateur marathon athletes using synthetic MRI: a preliminary study / 中华放射学杂志

Objective:To explore the value of synthetic MRI in quantitative monitoring of knee joint structural and cartilage changes of amateur marathon runners before and after the whole marathon.Methods:Totally 26 amateur marathon enthusiasts from Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province were recruited from October 2019 to January 2020. The right knee joints were scanned 1 week before the race and within 48 h after the race. The scanning sequence included the three-dimensional proton density weighted image with isotropic (3D-CUBE-PD) sequence and synthetic MRI sequence. The conventional contrast weighted images T 1WI, T 2WI, proton density (PD) weighted imaging, short-T 1 inversion recovery (STIR) and T 1, T 2, PD mapping were obtained by the latter scans. The 3D-CUBE-PD sequence was used as a reference to evaluate the detection of knee joint lesions. The knee articular cartilage was divided into 8 subregions: central medial femoral condyle (CMFC), posterior medial femoral condyle (PMFC), central lateral femoral condyle (CLFC), posterior lateral femoral condyle (PLFC), medial tibia plateau (MTP), lateral tibia plateau (LTP), patella and trochlear. Based on the synthetic MRI quantitative mapping, the T 1, T 2 and PD values of each cartilage subregion were measured independently by 2 radiologists. The ICC was used to evaluate the consistency of the measurement between observers. The T 1, T 2 and PD values of knee cartilage before and after marathon exercise were compared by Wilcoxon signed rank test. Results:The 2 radiologists had good consistency in the measurement of T 1, T 2 and PD values of knee articular cartilage with the ICC values of 0.912, 0.933 and 0.954, respectively. The synthetic MRI quantitative mapping sequence can detect all cartilage damage ( n=3) and joint effusion ( n=15), and 7 of 9 meniscus injuries were detected. The T 1, T 2 and PD values of the knee cartilage as a whole before the race were higher than those after race, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The T 1 values were statistically significant except patellar cartilage and trochlear cartilage, and T 2 values were significantly different in the CMFC, LTP, MTP ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Synthetic MRI has a good display of knee joint structural lesions, and its quantitative parameters T 1, T 2 and PD can detect the changes of knee cartilage before and after marathon.

Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Gliomas Exhibit Cell Biological and Molecular Signatures of Fetal Hindbrain-Derived Neural Progenitor Cells / 神经科学通报·英文版

Diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) is the main cause of brain tumor-related death among children. Until now, there is still a lack of effective therapy with prolonged overall survival for this disease. A typical strategy for preclinical cancer research is to find out the molecular differences between tumor tissue and para-tumor normal tissue, in order to identify potential therapeutic targets. Unfortunately, it is impossible to obtain normal tissue for DIPG because of the vital functions of the pons. Here we report the human fetal hindbrain-derived neural progenitor cells (pontine progenitor cells, PPCs) as normal control cells for DIPG. The PPCs not only harbored similar cell biological and molecular signatures as DIPG glioma stem cells, but also had the potential to be immortalized by the DIPG-specific mutation H3K27M in vitro. These findings provide researchers with a candidate normal control and a potential medicine carrier for preclinical research on DIPG.

Clinical Application Value of the Result of the HCV RNA,FIB-4 and Levels of 2 5-Hydroxy Vitamin D for Patients with Hepatitis C / 现代检验医学杂志

Objective To analyze the effects of 25-hydroxyvitamin D[25(OH)D]on the result of the HCV RNA and the FIB-4 in the patients with hepatitis C.Methods 255 serum samples were random collected from the patients with hepatitis C and 218 serum samples were random collected from the healthy people.The 25(OH)D,HCV RNA,aspartate aminotransferase (AST),alanine aminotransferase (ALT)and blood platelet (PLT)were detected.Then,compared the results of the 25 (OH)D in the patients with hepatitis C and the healthy group.Analyzed the relevance between the concentration of 25(OH) D and HCV RNA.According to the quartile concentration of the 25(OH)D,the patients with hepatitis C were categorized to four groups.The relationship of FIB-4 between HCVRNA and 25(OH)D was analyzed.Results The average concentration of the 25(OH)D in the patients with hepatitis C and healthy people were 48.16±1.41 nmol/L vs 60.42±1.34 nmol/L, with a significant difference (t=4.682,P<0.01).There were 38 patients (14.90%)had severe deficiency of 25(OH)D (<25 nmol/L)in 255 patients with hepatitis C.And there were 8 patients (3.67%)had severe deficiency of 25(OH)D (<25 nmol/L)in 218 healthy people,with a significant difference (t=5.216,P<0.01).Then found no relevance between the log-arithmic of the HCV RNA and the concentration of the 25(OH)D (r2=0.018 8,P=0.412)and there was significant differ-ence between the proportion of FIB-4 in the highest quartile concentration of the 25(OH)D and the lowest quartile concen-tration of the 25(OH)D (χ2=8.190,P=0.042).Conclusion The patients with hepatitis C were easier to have a severe de-ficiency of 25(OH)D than the healthy people.The hepatitis C patients should been suggested to supply the vitamin D.FIB-4 has a significant difference with 25(OH)D and no great effects on the result of the HCV RNA.

Effect of hypotension factor on endotracheal tube cuff-induced damage to tracheal mucous mem-brane of rabbits / 中华麻醉学杂志

Objective To evaluate the effect of hypotension factor on endotracheal tube cuff-in-duced damage to tracheal mucous membrane of rabbits. Methods Eighty healthy rabbits of both sexes, aged 3.0-3.5 months, weighing 2.5-3.5 kg, were divided into 16 groups(n=5 each)according to the cuff pressure and mean arterial pressure(MAP): different cuff pressures when MAP did not decrease groups(C1M1group, C2M1group, C3M1group, C4M1group), different cuff pressures when MAP de-creased by 20% of the baseline value groups(C1M2group, C2M2group, C3M2group, C4M2group), dif-ferent cuff pressures when MAP decreased by 30% of the baseline value groups(C1M3group, C2M3group, C3M3group, C4M3group), and different cuff pressures when MAP decreased by 40% of the baseline value groups(C1M4group, C2M4group, C3M4group, C4M4group). Different cuff pressures were 0, 10, 20 and 30 cmH2O.At 2 h of tracheal intubation, the tracheas in the cuff-compressed area were harvested and sliced for examination of the pathological changes of tracheal mucous membrane after haematoxylin and eosin staining(with a light microscope), and the damage to tracheal mucous membrane was scored. Results When at the same low pressure(MAP decreased by 20%, 30% and 40% of the baseline value), the score of damage to tracheal mucous membrane increased with the increasing cuff pressures(P<0.05). When at the same cuff pressure(10, 20 and 30 cmH2O), the score of damage to tracheal mucous membrane in-creased with the increasing MAP(P<0.05). There was interaction between cuff pressure and MAP, F=2.034(P<0.05). Conclusion There is interaction between the effects of hypotension factor and endotra-cheal tube cuff factor on damage to tracheal mucous membrane; hypotension factor can aggravate endotra-cheal tube cuff-induced damage to tracheal mucous membrane of rabbits.

Establishing reference intervals of the routine laboratory tests for hepatorenal function in Shanghai by biochemistry / 中华检验医学杂志

Objective To establish reference intervals of nine laboratory projects for hepatorenal function and verify its reliability by indirect method . Methods ALL test results were extracted from physical examinations that were stored in the laboratory information system of Zhongshan Hospital during 2012 to 2014.Using Skewness-Kurtosis test to detect the normality of data , if not the original data were transformed through BOX-COX transformation to obtain an approximatenormal distribution .Outliers were identified and omitted by Turkey method .The indirect reference intervals were taken by applying Hoffmann method.The reference change value ( RCV) was selected to inspect the statistical significance between the calculated and published reference intervals .Results Among those nine laboratory projects ,thedifferences betweenthereference intervalsfor ALT , AST, AKP, GGT, TP, BUNwerelessthan their RCV ( 26.65%,9.92%) ,and there was a significant difference between the calculated reference intervals and the current reference interval in the laboratory for the lower limit of the UA of male (>26.65%).Conclusion This research further proved the reliability of indirect reference intervals and this technique deserved to be promoted and applied by other clinical laboratories.

Effect of chronic low potassium on K+ uptake rate in myocardium and skeletal muscle of rabbits / 中华麻醉学杂志

Objective To evaluate the effect of chronic low potassium on K+uptake rate in the my?ocardium and skeletal muscle of rabbits. Methods Thirty?two adult male rabbits, aged 12-14 weeks, weighing 2?0-2?7 kg, were randomly divided into 4 groups ( n=8 each) using a random number table:normal feeding group ( group N) , low potassium feeding group ( group L) , potassium supplementation con?trol group ( group SC ) and potassium supplementation experimental group ( group SE ) . N and SC groups were given a normal diet only, and L and SE groups were fed with a low potassium diet for 15 days. Potassi?um chloride ( KCl) 0?5 mol∕L was then infused intravenously at the initial rate of 60 μmol·kg-1 ·min-1 in SE and SC groups. Blood samples were obtained from the central artery of the left ear every 5 min for meas?urement of plasma K+ concentrations. The infusion rat of KCl was then adjusted until the plasma K+concen?tration reached 5?5 mmol∕L and maintained at this level for 1 h, and then infusion was stopped. The total volume of KCl infused was recorded. The hearts and soleus muscle of animals were excised for determination of K+content. K+uptake and uptake rate were calculated. Results Compared with N group, the plasma K+concentration, and K+content in the myocardium and soleus muscle were significantly decreased in group L ( P<0?05) . Compared with SC group, the total volume of KCl infused, and K+uptake and uptake rate in the myocardium and soleus muscle were significantly increased in group SE ( P<0?05) . Conclusion Chro?nic hypokalaemia can increase K+ uptake rate in the myocardium and skeletal muscle of rabbits.

Role of acid-sensing ion channels in global cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats / 中华麻醉学杂志

Objective To investigate the role of acid-sensing ion channels (ASICs) in global cerebral ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury in rats. Methods Forty-eight adult male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 250-310 g were randomly divided into 4 groups ( n = 12 each): sham operation group (group S); global cerebral I/R group (group I/R); normal saline group (group NS) and specific ASIC blocker amiloride group (group A). Global cerebral I/R was produced by occlusion of 3 vessels ( 10 min occlusion of the bilateral common carotid arteries and basilar artery) followed by reperfusion. In group NS and A, NS 6 ml/kg and amiloride 0.6 mg/kg were injected through femoral vein immediately before reperfusion respectively. Six rats in each group were selected, the dialysate in CA1 area was collected before ischemia (baseline), immediately after ischemia and during 20 min reperfusion (once every 10 min) for determination of lactate concentrations. The left 6 rats in each group were elected at 8 h of reperfusion and the open field test and inclined plane test were peeformed to assess neurological behavior.The rats were then sacrificed and brain tissues taken for microscopic examination and brain water content was calculated. Results Compared with group S, the concentration of lactate in the dialysate and brain water content were significantly increased and neurological deficits developed in group I/R and NS (P ＜ 0.05). Compared with group I/R, the concentration of lactate in the dialysate and brain water content were significantly decreased and neurological deficits were improved in group A ( P ＜ 0.05 ), but no significant change in the parameters mentioned above was found in group NS ( P ＞ 0.05). Microscopic examination showed that the damage to the brain tissues was attenuated in group A compared with group I/R. Conclusion ASICs are involved in the development of global cerebral I/R injury in rats.

Expression of N-cadherin and β-catenin mRNA in Human Brainstem or Supratentorial Gliomas / 中国康复理论与实践

@#ObjectiveTo explore the expression of N-cadherin and β-catenin mRNA in human brainstem and supratentorial gliomas. MethodsN-cadherin and β-catenin mRNA expression in 18 cases of brainstem gliomas and 18 cases of supratentorial gliomas tissues were detected with PT-PCR. Resultsβ-catenin mRNA expression was more in human brainstem gliomas than in supratentorial gliomas （t=2.255,P<0.05）, but was not significantly different of N-cadherin mRNA (P＞0.05). The expression of N-cadherin mRNA in human brainstem gliomas of grades Ⅰ～Ⅱ were less than those in human gliomas of grades Ⅲ～Ⅳ (t=2.711，P<0.05), but was not of β-catenin mRNA (P＞0.05). N-cadherin mRNA expression was positively correlated with the β-catenin mRNA expression in either brainstem gliomas or supratentorial gliomas （r=0.480，r=0.809 respectively, P<0.05）. ConclusionThe over expressions of N-cadherin and β-catenin may play an important role in the invasion and malignant progress of human brainstem gliomas.