TDLNet: Transfer Data Learning Network for Cross-Subject Classification Based on Multiclass Upper Limb Motor Imagery EEG.

The limited number of brain-computer interface based on motor imagery (MI-BCI) instruction sets for different movements of single limbs makes it difficult to meet practical application requirements. Therefore, designing a single-limb, multi-category motor imagery (MI) paradigm and effectively decoding it is one of the important research directions in the future development of MI-BCI. Furthermore, one of the major challenges in MI-BCI is the difficulty of classifying brain activity across different individuals. In this article, the transfer data learning network (TDLNet) is proposed to achieve the cross-subject intention recognition for multiclass upper limb motor imagery. In TDLNet, the Transfer Data Module (TDM) is used to process cross-subject electroencephalogram (EEG) signals in groups and then fuse cross-subject channel features through two one-dimensional convolutions. The Residual Attention Mechanism Module (RAMM) assigns weights to each EEG signal channel and dynamically focuses on the EEG signal channels most relevant to a specific task. Additionally, a feature visualization algorithm based on occlusion signal frequency is proposed to qualitatively analyze the proposed TDLNet. The experimental results show that TDLNet achieves the best classification results on two datasets compared to CNN-based reference methods and transfer learning method. In the 6-class scenario, TDLNet obtained an accuracy of 65%±0.05 on the UML6 dataset and 63%±0.06 on the GRAZ dataset. The visualization results demonstrate that the proposed framework can produce distinct classifier patterns for multiple categories of upper limb motor imagery through signals of different frequencies. The ULM6 dataset is available at https://dx.doi.org/10.21227/8qw6-f578.

Biology and Roles in Diseases of Selenoprotein I Characterized by Ethanolamine Phosphotransferase Activity and Antioxidant Potential.

Selenoprotein I (SELENOI) has been demonstrated to be an ethanolamine phosphotransferase (EPT) characterized by a nonselenoenzymatic domain and to be involved in the main synthetic branch of phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) in the endoplasmic reticulum. Therefore, defects of SELENOI may affect the health status through the multiple functions of PE. On the other hand, selenium (Se) is covalently incorporated into SELENOI as selenocysteine (Sec) in its peptide, which forms a Sec-centered domain as in the other members of the selenoprotein family. Unlike other selenoproteins, Sec-containing SELENOI was formed at a later stage of animal evolution, and the high conservation of the structural domain for PE synthesis across a wide range of species suggests the importance of EPT activity in supporting the survival and evolution of organisms. A variety of factors, such as species characteristics (age and sex), diet and nutrition (dietary Se and fat intakes), SELENOI-specific properties (tissue distribution and rank in the selenoproteome), etc., synergistically regulate the expression of SELENOI in a tentatively unclear interaction. The N- and C-terminal domains confer 2 distinct biochemical functions to SELENOI, namely PE regulation and antioxidant potential, which may allow it to be involved in numerous physiological processes, including neurological diseases (especially hereditary spastic paraplegia), T cell activation, tumorigenesis, and adipocyte differentiation. In this review, we summarize advances in the biology and roles of SELENOI, shedding light on the precise regulation of SELENOI expression and PE homeostasis by dietary Se intake and pharmaceutical or transgenic approaches to modulate the corresponding pathological status.

TSPNet: a time-spatial parallel network for classification of EEG-based multiclass upper limb motor imagery BCI.

The classification of electroencephalogram (EEG) motor imagery signals has emerged as a prominent research focus within the realm of brain-computer interfaces. Nevertheless, the conventional, limited categories (typically just two or four) offered by brain-computer interfaces fail to provide an extensive array of control modes. To address this challenge, we propose the Time-Spatial Parallel Network (TSPNet) for recognizing six distinct categories of upper limb motor imagery. Within TSPNet, temporal and spatial features are extracted separately, with the time dimension feature extractor and spatial dimension feature extractor performing their respective functions. Following this, the Time-Spatial Parallel Feature Extractor is employed to decouple the connection between temporal and spatial features, thus diminishing feature redundancy. The Time-Spatial Parallel Feature Extractor deploys a gating mechanism to optimize weight distribution and parallelize time-spatial features. Additionally, we introduce a feature visualization algorithm based on signal occlusion frequency to facilitate a qualitative analysis of TSPNet. In a six-category scenario, TSPNet achieved an accuracy of 49.1% ± 0.043 on our dataset and 49.7% ± 0.029 on a public dataset. Experimental results conclusively establish that TSPNet outperforms other deep learning methods in classifying data from these two datasets. Moreover, visualization results vividly illustrate that our proposed framework can generate distinctive classifier patterns for multiple categories of upper limb motor imagery, discerned through signals of varying frequencies. These findings underscore that, in comparison to other deep learning methods, TSPNet excels in intention recognition, which bears immense significance for non-invasive brain-computer interfaces.

[Therapeutic Effect of Spleen Low Molecular Weight Extracts on Leukopenia Caused by Epirubicin in Mice and Its Mechanism].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the therapeutic effect of spleen low molecular weight extracts on epileptics hydrochloride-induced leukopenia in mice and explore its mechanism. METHODS: The model of leukopenia in mice was established by the injection of epirubicin hydrochloride (10 mg/kg). After the injection of chemotherapeutic drugs, leukocytopenia mice were treated with different doses of spleen low molecular weight extract, Ganoderma oral solution and recombinant granulocyte colony stimulating factor (rhG-CSF). The general survival status indicators such as body weight, coat color and athletic ability of mice in each group were recorded; the tail vein blood of mice in each group was collected and the white blood cell count in them was calculated; bone marrow of mice was taken and bone marrow smears were observed. RESULTS: In the model group, the weight of the mice gradually decreased in the later period, their coat became dark and rough, and the ability to exercise decreased, while the mice in the treatment groups showed different degrees of improvement in their survival status except for the mice treated by rhG-CSF. There was no significant fluctuation in the white blood cell count of the blank control mice. After injection of epirubicin, the white blood cell count of peripheral blood in the model mice and treated mice were decreased. The white blood cell count was lower in the mice treated with high-dose low molecular weight extract and rhG-CSF than that in other experimental groups. Bone marrow smear showed that the proportion of bone marrow nucleated cells in the mice treated with the low molecular weight extract of the spleen was significantly higher than that of model mice (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: The low molecular weight spleen extracts can significantly improve the hematopoietic state of mouse bone marrow, promote the proliferation of inhibited bone marrow cells, and thus has the effect of treating leukopenia in mice.

Late cure of focal ventricular arrhythmias post-catheter ablation: electrophysiological characteristics and long-term outcome.

PURPOSE: Late cure after a previously failed ablation of ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) is a relatively common phenomenon. The present study sought to delineate the incidence and electrophysiological characteristics of late cure in idiopathic VA patients. METHODS: Totally, 45 idiopathic VA cases (mean age 44 ± 18 years, 27 males) either failed acutely or recurred within 12 h were enrolled in this study. Based on intensive clinical observations in the acute period, 19 (42%) patients demonstrated late cure in the first week after the procedure. RESULTS: The late cure patients had significantly better acute and cumulative ablation effects during the procedure than did those without a late cure. Additionally, they had a prediction that originated from the right ventricular outflow tract, aortic-mitral continuum, and left summit area relative to other sites (13/18 vs 6/27, p < 0.01). In a median follow-up of 24 [14, 46] months, 7/19 (37%) patients had their VAs recurred. The late cure group had significantly more patients cured at long-term follow-up than those without (12/19 vs 0/26, p < 0.01). A cutoff value of the "time to eliminate VAs" > 7.0 s was able to predict a long-term recurrence of the VAs with 62.5% sensitivity and 85.7% specificity. CONCLUSIONS: The late cure of VAs occurs in more than one third of patients who have a seemingly unsuccessful ablation session, which is clustered in the first week after the procedure. However, long-term recurrence of VAs occurred in 37% of the late cure patients, emphasizing the importance of long-term follow-up.

Novel acetylcholinesterase inhibitors from Zijuan tea and biosynthetic pathway of caffeoylated catechin in tea plant.

Zijuan tea is a special cultivar of Yunnan broad-leaf tea (Camellia sinensis var. assamica) with purple buds, leaves, and stems. Phytochemical study on this tea led to the discovery of three hydroxycinnamoylated catechins (HCCs) (1-3), seven other catechins (4-10), three proanthocyanidins (11-13), five flavones and flavone glycosides (14-18), two alkaloids (19, 20), one steroid (21), and one phenylpropanoid glycoside (22). The isolation and structural elucidation of the caffeoylated catechin (1) by means of spectroscopic techniques were described. We also provide the first evidence that 1 is synthesized via a two-step pathway in tea plant. The three HCCs (1-3) were investigated on their bioactivity through molecular modeling simulation and biochemical experiments. Our results show that they bind acetylcholinesterase (AChE) tightly and have strong AChE inhibitory activity with IC50 value at 2.49, 11.41, 62.26µM, respectively.

Differential effects of Rhodiola rosea on regulatory T cell differentiation and interferon­Î³ production in vitro and in vivo.

Rhodiola rosea (R. rosea), a type of adaptogen, has been previously reported to exhibit immunostimulating activity in rodents and in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in vitro. To examine the effect of R. rosea on T cells under simulated microgravity, spaceflight analogs of human head­down bed rest (HDBR) at ­6˚ and murine hind limb unloading (HU) were used. A decrease in the levels of interferon­Î³ (IFN­Î³) and interleukin­17 (IL­17) and an increase in regulatory T (Treg) cells were observed in the placebo group following HDBR. The R. rosea treated HBDR group demonstrated further decreased IFN­Î³ production, however, R. rosea exhibited no effect on the ratio of circulating Tregs or Treg cell differentiation. By contrast, the treatment of R. rosea on human T cells in vitro did not alter IFN­Î³ secretion, however, Treg differentiation was significantly reduced. An R. rosea­induced upregulation of hypoxia­inducible factor 1α (HIF­1α) contributed to the suppression of Treg differentiation in vitro. Differences in the effect of R. rosea in vitro and in vivo were also observed using a mouse model of microgravity. The results of the current study suggest that R. rosea has differential modulatory effects on T cells in vivo and in vitro and care should be taken when evaluating the effects of R. rosea on the immune system.

Role of Berberine in the Treatment of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Infections.

Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid widely used in the treatment of microbial infections. Recent studies have shown that berberine can enhance the inhibitory efficacy of antibiotics against clinical multi-drug resistant isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). However, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Here, we demonstrated that sub-minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of berberine exhibited no bactericidal activity against MRSA, but affected MRSA biofilm development in a dose dependent manner within the concentration ranging from 1 to 64 µg/mL. Further study indicated that berberine inhibited MRSA amyloid fibrils formation, which consist of phenol-soluble modulins (PSMs). Molecular dynamics simulation revealed that berberine could bind with the phenyl ring of Phe19 in PSMα2 through hydrophobic interaction. Collectively, berberine can inhibit MRSA biofilm formation via affecting PSMs' aggregation into amyloid fibrils, and thereby enhance bactericidal activity of antibiotics. These findings will provide new insights into the multiple pharmacological properties of berberine in the treatment of microbial-generated amyloid involved diseases.

Role of berberine in anti-bacterial as a high-affinity LPS antagonist binding to TLR4/MD-2 receptor.

BACKGROUND: Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid mainly extracted from Rhizoma Coptidis and has been shown to possess a potent inhibitory activity against bacterial. However, the role of berberine in anti-bacterial action has not been extensively studied. METHODS: The animal model was established to investigate the effects of berberine on bacterial and LPS infection. Docking analysis, Molecular dynamics simulations and Real-time RT-PCR analysis was adopted to investigate the molecular mechanism. RESULTS: Treatment with 40 mg/kg berberine significantly increased the survival rate of mice challenged with Salmonella typhimurium (LT2), but berberine show no effects in bacteriostasis. Further study indicated that treatment with 0.20 g/kg berberine markedly increased the survival rate of mice challenged with 2 EU/ml bacterial endotoxin (LPS) and postpone the death time of the dead mice. Moreover, pretreatment with 0.05 g/kg berberine significantly lower the increasing temperature of rabbits challenged with LPS. The studies of molecular mechanism demonstrated that Berberine was able to bind to the TLR4/MD-2 receptor, and presented higher affinity in comparison with LPS. Furthermore, berberine could significantly suppressed the increasing expression of NF-κB, IL-6, TNFα, and IFNß in the RAW264.7 challenged with LPS. CONCLUSION: Berberine can act as a LPS antagonist and block the LPS/TLR4 signaling from the sourse, resulting in the anti-bacterial action.

Treatment of Bell's Palsy Using Monochromatic Infrared Energy: A Report of 2 Cases.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study is to describe the use of monochromatic infrared energy (MIRE) therapy in the management of 2 patients with Bell's palsy. CLINICAL FEATURES: Two patients presented to a chiropractic clinic with Bell's palsy that was diagnosed by a medical physician. Both patients were treated using MIRE. The acute patient was a 32-year-old male. He presented with left facial palsy 1 day before the consultation. He was unable to puff the left cheek and close the left eyelid. He had difficulty raising the left eyebrow. The chronic case was a 46-year-old lady. Prior to the first consultation, she was treated with corticosteroid and electro-acupuncture for one and a half years, with incomplete recovery. When first seen, the left corner of mouth drooped and she had difficulty raising her left eyebrow. INTERVENTION AND OUTCOME: Monochromatic infrared energy therapy, emitting 890 nm infrared light, was placed on the post-auricular area, pre-auricular area, the temple and mandibular area of the affected side. Each treatment lasted 30 minutes. Photographs were taken every week to document changes. The acute case received 19 treatments in 6 weeks. He reported an improvement of 95%. The chronic case received a total of 45 treatments in 9 months. She rated an improvement of 50%. At the conclusion of treatment, she was able to close her left eyelid and puff her left cheek but still could not raise her left eyebrow. CONCLUSION: These 2 patients seemed to respond to a different degree to the MIRE therapy. As 71% of patients with Bell's palsy recover uneventfully without any treatment, the present study describes the course of care but cannot confirm the effectiveness of MIRE therapy in the management of Bell's palsy.

Observation of room-temperature ballistic thermal conduction persisting over 8.3 µm in SiGe nanowires.

In ballistic thermal conduction, the wave characteristics of phonons allow the transmission of energy without dissipation. However, the observation of ballistic heat transport at room temperature is challenging because of the short phonon mean free path. Here we show that ballistic thermal conduction persisting over 8.3 µm can be observed in SiGe nanowires with low thermal conductivity for a wide range of structural variations and alloy concentrations. We find that an unexpectedly low percentage (∼0.04%) of phonons carry out the heat conduction process in SiGe nanowires, and that the ballistic phonons display properties including non-additive thermal resistances in series, unconventional contact thermal resistance, and unusual robustness against external perturbations. These results, obtained in a model semiconductor, could enable wave-engineering of phonons and help to realize heat waveguides, terahertz phononic crystals and quantum phononic/thermoelectric devices ready to be integrated into existing silicon-based electronics.

Identification of active compounds from Caesalpinia sappan L. extracts suppressing IL-6 production in RAW 264.7 cells by PLS.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Caesalpinia sappan L. is distributed in Southeast Asia and also used as herbal medicine for the treatment of various diseases such as burning sensations, leprosy, dysentery, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The overproduction of IL-6 plays an important role in the prognosis of RA, but the active compounds from the extracts of Caesalpinia sappan L. suppressing IL-6 production remain unknown. AIMS OF THE STUDY: Identifying the main active compounds of Caesalpinia sappan L. extracts inhibiting the IL-6 production in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells by partial least squares (PLS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty-four samples with different proportions of compounds were prepared from Caesalpinia sappan L. by supercritical CO2 fluid extraction (SCFE) and refluxing. Each of 64 samples was applied to RAW 264.7 cells with LPS to evaluate whether IL-6 production by LPS is affected by addition of each sample. The IL-6 production in medium was determined by ELISA and the inhibitory activity of each sample was analyzed. In addition, the fingerprints of these 64 samples were also established by ultra-performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS). We used the PLS, a simplified method, to evaluate the results from IL-6 production and fingerprints. RESULTS: Each of 64 samples markedly suppressed LPS-induced IL-6 production in RAW cells. The fingerprints by UPLC-MS clearly revealed variations among 64 samples produced in different extract conditions. The PLS analysis with IL-6 production and fingerprints by UPLC-MS suggested that the peaks 71, 93, 150, 157, 168 have more influence on the inhibitory activity of Caesalpinia sappan L. extracts. The peaks 71, 93, 150 are likely representing sappanone A, protosappanin E and neoprotosappanin, respectively. The peaks 157 and 168 are still at large. CONCLUSION: This is the first report that sappanone A, protosappanin E, neoprotosappanin and two unidentified compounds can be considered as possible active compounds that might inhibit IL-6 production. Further studies are needed to confirm the effectiveness of these five compounds on IL-6 production and possible mechanism.

Comparing the effectiveness of mindfulness-based stress reduction and multidisciplinary intervention programs for chronic pain: a randomized comparative trial.

OBJECTIVES: Research suggests that an 8-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program (a structured form of meditation) might be effective in the treatment of various health problems including chronic pain. Our objective was to compare the clinical effectiveness of the MBSR program with a multidisciplinary pain intervention (MPI) program in terms of pain intensity, pain-related distress, quality of life, and mood in patients with chronic pain. METHODS: A randomized, comparative clinical trial was conducted, including 6-month posttreatment follow-up. Ninety-nine participants, aged 24 to 64 years, with pain for a minimum of 3 months, were recruited from community-based clinics, hospitals, and community service centers. Participants were randomly allocated to either the MBSR program (51 participants) or a MPI program (48 participants). The study used validated Chinese versions of self-reported questionnaires measuring pain, mood symptoms, and health-related quality of life. RESULTS: Thirty-nine participants (77%) completed the MBSR program and 44 (90%) completed the MPI program. Patients in both the groups were comparable with regard to demographical characteristics, pain intensity, mood symptoms, and health-related quality-of-life measures before intervention. In both the groups, patients who completed the trial demonstrated statistically significant improvements in pain intensity and pain-related distress. However, no statistically significant differences were observed in overall results between the MBSR and MPI groups. CONCLUSIONS: This randomized, clinical trial showed that both MBSR and MPI programs reduced pain intensity and pain-related distress although no statistically significant differences were observed between the 2 groups and the improvements were small.

[The duration and amount of fire (huo hou) in drug processing].

The unique connotations for the special terms such as slow fire (wen huo), strong fire (wu huo), moderate fire (wen wu huo), ma tong fire, husk fire (kang huo), reed fire (lu di huo), mulberry fire (sang cai huo) and charcoal fire (tan huo) are investigated. There are many practical examples of these terms in related literature. The drug process is related to the alchemy in Taoism. The methods of fire control in drug processing are mostly from the literature on Alchemy (dan jing). The expression of these special terms and their connotations are different in various literature, because of their different traditions.

[The extract of compound Radix Scutellariae on mRNA replication and IFN expression of influenza virus in mice].

OBJECTIVE: To study the extract of compound Radix Scutellariae on inhibiting the mRNA replication and inducing the INF expression of influenza virus in mice's vivo. METHODS: Influenza virus infected mice pneumono-adaption stock A/FM/1/47 (H1N1) evoked mice pneumonia taken as animal model. RT-PCR was adopted to measure the content of influenza virus's mRNA and INF in mice to study the effect of the extract on mRNA replication and IFN expression. RESULTS: The extract of compound Radix Scutellariae could inhibit influenza virus' s mRNA replication (P < 0.01) and induce interferon expression in mice (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The extract of compound Radix Scutellariae can induce interferon and inhibit influenza virus replication in mice.

[Effect of baicalin on in vivo anti-virus].

OBJECTIVE: This study is about the in vivo antivirus effect of baicalin. METHOD: Adopting in vivo experiment, we administered one group of mice 2 days before infected with influenza virus (A/FM/1/47) , while administer the other group with baicalin one day after infected, to observe the effect of baicalin in protecting and curing mice against influenza virus. RESULT: Baicalin can obviously prolong the survival time of mice infected with influenza virus (A/FM/1/47) (P <0.01), eliminate the influenza virus in lung, reduce the hemagglutination tite and infectivity in pulmo, and reverse mice's pneumonic pathological changes. CONCLUSION: Baicalin can obviously counteract influenza virus.