YLC-assembly: large DNA assembly via yeast life cycle.

As an enabling technique of synthetic biology, the scale of DNA assembly largely determines the scale of genetic manipulation. However, large DNA assembly technologies are generally cumbersome and inefficient. Here, we developed a YLC (yeast life cycle)-assembly method that enables in vivo iterative assembly of large DNA by nesting cell-cell transfer of assembled DNA in the cycle of yeast mating and sporulation. Using this method, we successfully assembled a hundred-kilobase (kb)-sized endogenous yeast DNA and a megabase (Mb)-sized exogenous DNA. For each round, over 104 positive colonies per 107 cells could be obtained, with an accuracy ranging from 67% to 100%. Compared with other Mb-sized DNA assembly methods, this method exhibits a higher success rate with an easy-to-operate workflow that avoid in vitro operations of large DNA. YLC-assembly lowers the technical difficulty of Mb-sized DNA assembly and could be a valuable tool for large-scale genome engineering and synthetic genomics.

The Bbotf1 Zn(â ¡)2Cys6 transcription factor contributes to antioxidant response, fatty acid assimilation, peroxisome proliferation and infection cycles in insect pathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana.

The abilities to withstand oxidation and assimilate fatty acids are critical for successful infection by many pathogenic fungi. Here, we characterized a Zn(II)2Cys6 transcription factor Bbotf1 in the insect pathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana, which links oxidative response and fatty acid assimilation via regulating peroxisome proliferation. The null mutant ΔBbotf1 showed impaired resistance to oxidants, accompanied by decreased activities of antioxidant enzymes including CATs, PODs and SODs, and down-regulated expression of many antioxidation-associated genes under oxidative stress condition. Meanwhile, Bbotf1 acts as an activator to regulate fatty acid assimilation, lipid and iron homeostasis as well as peroxisome proliferation and localization, and the expressions of some critical genes related to glyoxylate cycle and peroxins were down-regulated in ΔBbotf1 in presence of oleic acid. In addition, ΔBbotf1 was more sensitive to osmotic stressors, CFW, SDS and LDS. Insect bioassays revealed that insignificant changes in virulence were seen between the null mutant and parent strain when conidia produced on CZP plates were used for topical application. However, propagules recovered from cadavers killed by ΔBbotf1 exhibited impaired virulence as compared with counterparts of the parent strain. These data offer a novel insight into fine-tuned aspects of Bbotf1 concerning multi-stress responses, lipid catabolism and infection cycles.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles have biphasic roles on Mycobacterium-induced inflammation by activating autophagy and ferroptosis mechanisms in infected macrophages.

The ability of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) to induce bacteriostasis in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb) and their roles in regulating the pathogenic activities of immune cells have been reported previously, but the specific mechanisms underlying these regulatory functions remain unclear. This work aimed to determine how ZnONPs play the antibacterial role against M. tb. In vitro activity assays were employed to determine the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the ZnONPs against various strains of M. tb (BCG, H37Rv, and clinical susceptible MDR and XDR strains). The ZnONPs had MICs of 0.5-2 mg/L against all tested isolates. In addition, changes in the expression levels of autophagy and ferroptosis-related markers in BCG-infected macrophages exposed to ZnONPs were measured. BCG-infected mice that were administered ZnONPs were used to determine the ZnONPs functions in vivo. ZnONPs decreased the number of bacteria engulfed by the macrophages in a dose-dependent manner, while different doses of ZnONPs also affected inflammation in different directions. Although ZnONPs enhanced the BCG-induced autophagy of macrophages in a dose-dependent manner, only low doses of ZnONPs activated autophagy mechanisms by increasing the levels of pro-inflammatory factors. The ZnONPs also enhanced BCG-induced ferroptosis of macrophages at high doses. Co-administration of a ferroptosis inhibitor with the ZnONPs improved the anti-Mycobacterium activity of ZnONPs in an in vivo mouse model and alleviated acute lung injury caused by ZnONPs. Based on the above findings, we conclude that ZnONPs may act as potential antibacterial agents in future animal and clinical studies.

Shared and distinct brain fMRI response during performance of working memory tasks in adult patients with schizophrenia and major depressive disorder.

Working memory (WM) impairments are common features of psychiatric disorders. A systematic meta-analysis was performed to determine common and disorder-specific brain fMRI response during performance of WM tasks in patients with SZ and patients with MDD relative to healthy controls (HC). Thirty-four published fMRI studies of WM in patients with SZ and 18 published fMRI studies of WM in patients with MDD, including relevant HC, were included in the meta-analysis. In both SZ and MDD there was common stronger fMRI response in right medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) and bilateral anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), which are part of the default mode network (DMN). The effects were of greater magnitude in SZ than MDD, especially in prefrontal-temporal-cingulate-striatal-cerebellar regions. In addition, a disorder-specific weaker fMRI response was observed in right middle frontal gyrus (MFG) in MDD, relative to HC. For both SZ and MDD a significant correlation was observed between the severity of clinical symptoms and lateralized fMRI response relative to HC. These findings indicate that there may be common and distinct anomalies in brain function underlying deficits in WM in SZ and MDD, which may serve as a potential functional neuroimaging-based diagnostic biomarker with value in supporting clinical diagnosis, measuring illness severity and assessing the efficacy of treatments for SZ and MDD at the brain level.

Gray Matter Atrophy in the Cortico-Striatal-Thalamic Network and Sensorimotor Network in Relapsing-Remitting and Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis.

Gray matter atrophy in multiple sclerosis (MS) is thought to be associated with disability and cognitive impairment, but previous studies have sometimes had discordant results, and the atrophy patterns of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) remain to be clarified. We conducted a meta-analysis using anisotropic effect-size-based algorithms (AES-SDM) to identify consistent findings from whole-brain voxel-based morphometry (VBM) studies of gray matter volume (GMV) in 924 RRMS patients and 204 PPMS patients. This study is registered with PROSPERO (number CRD42019121319). Compared with healthy controls, RRMS and PPMS patients showed gray matter atrophy in the cortico-striatal-thalamic network, sensorimotor network, and bilateral insula. RRMS patients had a larger GMV in the left insula, cerebellum, right precentral gyrus, and bilateral putamen as well as a smaller GMV in the bilateral cingulate, caudate nucleus, right thalamus, superior temporal gyrus and left postcentral gyrus than PPMS patients. The disease duration, Expanded Disability Status Scale score, Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test z-score, and T2-weighted lesion load were associated with specific gray matter regions in RRMS or PPMS. Alterations in the cortico-striatal-thalamic networks, sensorimotor network, and insula may be involved in the common pathogenesis of RRMS and PPMS. The deficits in the cingulate gyrus and caudate nucleus are more apparent in RRMS than in PPMS. The more severe cerebellum atrophy in PPMS may be a brain feature associated with its neurological manifestations. These imaging biomarkers provide morphological evidence for the pathophysiology of MS and should be verified in future research.

Failure of activation of striatum during the performance of executive function tasks in adult patients with bipolar disorder.

BACKGROUND: Although numerous studies have used functional neuroimaging to identify executive dysfunction in patients with bipolar disorder (BD), the findings are not consistent. The aim of this meta-analysis is to identify the most reliable functional anomalies in BD patients during performance of Executive Function (EF) tasks. METHODS: A web-based search was performed on publication databases to identify functional magnetic resonance imaging studies of BD patients performing EF tasks and a voxel-based meta-analytic method known as anisotropic Effect Size Signed Differential Mapping (ES-SDM) was used to identify brain regions which showed anomalous activity in BD patients compared with healthy controls (HC). RESULTS: Twenty datasets consisting of 463 BD patients and 484 HC were included. Compared with HC, BD patients showed significant hypo-activation or failure of activation in the left striatum (p = 0.00007), supplementary motor area (BA 6, p = 0.00037), precentral gyrus (BA 6, p = 0.0014) and cerebellum (BA 37, p = 0.0019), and hyper-activation in the left gyrus rectus (BA 11, p ≈ 0) and right middle temporal gyrus (BA 22, p = 0.00031) during performance of EF tasks. Sensitivity and subgroup analyses showed that the anomaly of left striatum is consistent across studies and present in both euthymic and BD I patients. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with BD consistently showed abnormal activation in the cortico-striatal system during performance of EF tasks compared with HC. Failure of activation of the striatum may be a reliable marker for impairment in performance of especially inhibition tasks by patients with BD.

Different Neural Correlates of Sexually Preferred and Sexually Nonpreferred Stimuli.

BACKGROUND: The differences and relationships between stimulus-related brain activation for sexually preferred stimuli and sexually nonpreferred stimuli are still unclear. AIM: This study aimed to identify brain regions that were mostly associated with sexual stimuli. METHODS: We used the activation likelihood estimation, meta-analytic connectivity modelling, and behavioral domain metadata in the BrainMap database to perform this analysis. OUTCOMES: We found convergent activation foci and created a model for the extended brain network involved in responses to sexual stimuli and also assessed the functional properties of these regions. RESULTS: A total of 34 experiments from 15 studies including 368 subjects and 343 foci were analyzed. The results showed that sexual stimuli are related to the extensive activation of the occipital-temporal-limbic system and less extensive activation of the basal ganglia. Sexually preferred stimuli activated mainly the anterior cingulate cortex and right fusiform gyrus, while sexually nonpreferred stimuli activated the limbic system, occipital gyrus, and thalamus. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: To have a further understanding of the central mechanisms of human sexuality. STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS: Patient characteristics and analysis techniques in the included studies were heterogeneous. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that the anterior cingulate cortex is an important cognitive control area for both sexually preferred and nonpreferred stimuli. Meta-analytic connectivity modelling analysis revealed a network of the core brain areas involved in response to sexual stimuli, and behavioral domain analysis indicated that these areas have both common and discrete functional properties. Long X, Tian F, Zhou Y, et al. Different Neural Correlates of Sexually Preferred and Sexually Nonpreferred Stimuli. J Sex Med 2020;17:1254-1267.

Brain grey-matter volume alteration in adult patients with bipolar disorder under different conditions: a voxel-based meta-analysis

Background: The literature on grey-matter volume alterations in bipolar disorder is heterogeneous in its findings. Methods: Using effect-size differential mapping, we conducted a meta-analysis of grey-matter volume alterations in patients with bipolar disorder compared with healthy controls. Results: We analyzed data from 50 studies that included 1843 patients with bipolar disorder and 2289 controls. Findings revealed lower grey-matter volumes in the bilateral superior frontal gyri, left anterior cingulate cortex and right insula in patients with bipolar disorder and in patients with bipolar disorder type I. Patients with bipolar disorder in the euthymic and depressive phases had spatially distinct regions of altered grey-matter volume. Meta-regression revealed that the proportion of female patients with bipolar disorder or bipolar disorder type I was negatively correlated with regional grey-matter alteration in the right insula; the proportion of patients with bipolar disorder or bipolar disorder type I taking lithium was positively correlated with regional grey-matter alterations in the left anterior cingulate/paracingulate gyri; and the proportion of patients taking antipsychotic medications was negatively correlated with alterations in the anterior cingulate/paracingulate gyri. Limitations: This study was cross-sectional; analysis techniques, patient characteristics and clinical variables in the included studies were heterogeneous. Conclusion: Structural grey-matter abnormalities in patients with bipolar disorder and bipolar disorder type I were mainly in the prefrontal cortex and insula. Patients' mood state might affect grey-matter alterations. Abnormalities in regional grey-matter volume could be correlated with patients' specific demographic and clinical features.

Gray matter bases of psychotic features in adult bipolar disorder: A systematic review and voxel-based meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies.

Psychotic bipolar disorder (P-BD) is a specific subset that presents greater risk of relapse and worse outcomes than nonpsychotic bipolar disorder (NP-BD). To explore the neuroanatomical bases of psychotic dimension in bipolar disorder (BD), a systematic review was carried out based on the gray matter volume (GMV) among P-BD and NP-BD patients and healthy controls (HC). Further, we conducted a meta-analysis of GMV differences between P-BD patients and HC using a whole-brain imaging approach. Our review revealed that P-BD patients exhibited smaller GMVs mainly in the prefronto-temporal and cingulate cortices, the precentral gyrus, and insula relative to HC both qualitatively and quantitatively. Qualitatively the comparison between P-BD and NP-BD patients suggested inconsistent GMV alterations mainly involving the prefrontal cortex, while NP-BD patients showed GMV deficits in local regions compared with HC. The higher proportions of female patients and patients taking psychotropic medication in P-BD and P-BD type I were associated with smaller GMV in the right precentral gyrus, and the right insula, respectively. In conclusions, psychosis in BD might be associated with specific cortical GMV deficits. Gender and psychotropic medication might have effects on the regional GMVs in P-BD patients. It is necessary to distinguish psychotic dimension in neuroimaging studies of BD.

The accuracy of 18F-FDG PET/CT in predicting the pathological response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer: a meta-analysis and systematic review.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the accuracy of 18F-FDG PET/CT in predicting the pathological response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in breast cancer (BC) patients. METHODS: PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library (Central), and the Web of Science (SCI-Expanded) were systematically searched to identify pertinent studies. The methodologic quality of the included studies was assessed by the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2. The Spearman correlation coefficient was used to explore the existence of a threshold effect. Heterogeneity was assessed by the likelihood ratio I 2 index. RESULTS: The pooled values calculated with a mixed-effects model for the sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic odds ratio with 95% confidence intervals were 81.9% (76.0-86.6%), 79.3% (72.1-85.1%) and 17.35 (10.98-27.42), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: 18F-FDG PET/CT has a moderate accuracy in predicting the pathological response during the early process of NAC in breast cancer patients. To increase the role of 18F-FDG PET/CT in monitoring the therapy response, future prospective studies are needed to explore how chemotherapy regimens and different subtypes affect the levels of glucose metabolism. KEY POINTS: • This meta-analysis assesses the role of PET/CT in breast cancer during NAC. • Pathological responses were based on both primary tumour and lymph node. • 18 F-FDG PET/CT has a moderate accuracy in predicting the pathological response.

Symmetric cyanovinyl-pyridinium triphenylamine: a novel fluorescent switch-on probe for an antiparallel G-quadruplex.

In this study, we present a fluorescent switch-on probe based on a cyanovinyl-pyridinium triphenylamine (CPT) derivative that exhibited a 190-fold increase in fluorescence upon binding to G-quadruplex-forming oligonucleotide 22AG. This probe showed specificity and selectivity towards an antiparallel G-quadruplex, indicating its promising potential in G-quadruplex imaging.

Exploiting the role of resveratrol in rat mitochondrial permeability transition.

Resveratrol (RSV), a natural polyphenolic antioxidant, has been considered an anticarcinogenic agent as it triggers tumor cell apoptosis through activation of the mitochondrial pathway. In our study, the effects of RSV on mitochondria, especially on the mitochondrial permeability transition (MPT) process, were investigated by multiple methods. We found that RSV induced a collapse of membrane potential and matrix swelling related to MPT. We further demonstrated that Ca²âº was necessary for this RSV-induced MPT opening. In addition, RSV induced the inner membrane permeabilization to H⁺ and K⁺, the depression of respiration and changes in membrane fluidity. The results suggested that RSV-induced MPT was accompanied by mitochondrial dysfunction. But the prohibition on lipid peroxidation and different effects of low- and high-dose RSV on membrane fluidity and respiration showed that the interaction of RSV and the mitochondria could not be the result of a single simple mechanism.

The brain activity pattern in alcohol-use disorders under inhibition response Task.

BACKGROUND: Inhibitory control impairment in alcohol use disorder (AUD) may indicate detrimental effects of chronic alcohol use on different functional systems in the brain, but the current studies lack consistency. This study aims to identify the most consistent response inhibition-related brain dysfunction based on existing data. METHODS: We performed systematic searches of the PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and PsychINFO databases for available studies. Anisotropic effect-size signed differential mapping was used to quantitatively analyze the differences in response inhibition-related brain activation between AUD patients and HCs. Meta regression was used to explore the relationship between brain alterations and clinical variables. RESULTS: The brain hypoactivation or hyperactivation in AUD patients compared with HCs during the response inhibition tasks was mainly located in the prefrontal cortex including the superior frontal gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, and middle frontal gyrus, anterior cingulate gyrus (ACC), superior temporal gyrus, occipital gyrus, and somatosensory areas including postcentral gyrus and supramarginal gyrus. The meta-regression revealed that older patients were more likely to present activation in the left superior frontal gyrus when performing the response inhibition tasks. CONCLUSIONS: The response inhibitive dysfunctions in a distinct prefrontal-cingulate cortices may presumably reflect the core impairment in cognitive control abilities. Dysfunction in the occipital gyrus and somatosensory areas may indicate an abnormal motor-sensory and visual function in AUD. Such functional abnormalities may represent neurophysiological correlates of the executive deficits observed in AUD patients. This study has been registered in PROSPERO (number CRD42022339384).

Ameliorative effects of Bifidobacterium longum peptide-1 on benzo(α)pyrene induced oxidative damages via daf-16 in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Oxidative stress is implicated in numerous diseases, with benzo(α)pyrene (BaP) known for causing substantial oxidative damage. Bifidobacterium longum (B. longum) is recognized as an antioxidant bacterium for certain hosts, yet its influence on oxidative damages instigated by BaP remains undetermined. In our study, we introduced various strains of Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) to BaP to trigger oxidative stress, subsequently treating them with different forms of B. longum to evaluate its protective effects. Additionally, we explored the role of daf-16 in this context. Our findings indicated that in wild-type N2 C. elegans, B. longum-even in the form of inactivated bacteria or bacterial ultrasonic lysates (BULs)-significantly extended lifespan. BaP exposure notably decreased lifespan, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, and motility, while simultaneously down-regulating the expression of reactive oxygen species (ROS)-associated genes (sod-3, sek-1, cat-1) and daf-16 downstream genes (sod-3, ctl-2). However, it significantly increased the ROS level, malondialdehyde (MDA) content, and lipofuscin accumulation and up-regulated another daf-16 downstream gene (clk-1) (P <0.05). Interestingly, when further treated with B. longum peptide-1 (BLP-1), opposite effects were observed, and all the aforementioned indices changed significantly. In the case of RNAi (daf-16) C. elegans, BaP exposure significantly shortened the lifespan (P <0.05), which was only slightly prolonged upon further treatment with BLP-1. Furthermore, the expression of daf-16 downstream genes showed minor alterations in RNAi C. elegans upon treatment with either BaP or BLP-1. In conclusion, our findings suggest that B. longum acts as a probiotic for C. elegans. BLP-1 was shown to safeguard C. elegans from numerous oxidative damages induced by BaP, but these protective effects were contingent upon the daf-16 gene.

Toxicity of CdTe quantum dots on yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Along with the widespread development of their bioapplications, concerns about the biosafety of quantum dots (QDs) have increasingly attracted intensive attention. This study examines the toxic effect and subcellular location of cadmium telluride (CdTe) QDs with different sizes against yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The innovative approach is based on the combination of microcalorimetric, spectroscopic, electrochemical, and microscopic methods, which allows analysis of the toxic effect of CdTe QDs on S. cerevisiae and its mechanism. According to the values of the half inhibitory concentration (IC(50)), CdTe QDs exhibit marked cytotoxicity in yeast cells at concentrations as low as 80.81 nmol L(-1) for green-emitting CdTe QDs and 17.07 nmol L(-1) for orange-emitting CdTe QDs. QD-induced cell death is characterized by cell wall breakage and cytoplasm blebbing. These findings suggest that QDs with sizes ranging from 4.1 to 5.8 nm can be internalized into yeast cells, which then leads to QD-induced cytotoxicity. These studies provide valuable information for the design and development of aqueous QDs for biological applications.

Synthesis of three novel anionic gemini surfactants and comparative studies of their assemble behavior in the presence of bovine serum albumin.

Three novel anionic sulfonate gemini surfactants, sodium 4,4'-(10,19-dioxo-9,11,18,20-tetraazaoctacosane-9,20-diyl) dibenzenesulfonate (Surfactant I), sodium 4,4'-(12,21-dioxo-11,13,20,22-tetraazadotriacontane-11,22-diyl) dibenzenesulfonate (Surfactant II), and sodium 4,4'-(14,23-dioxo-13,15,22,24-tetraazahezatriacontane-13,24-diyl) dibenzenesulfonate (Surfactant III), with different lengths of hydrophobic tail have been synthesized, and their assembly behavior in the presence of bovine serum albumin (BSA) has been studied using spectral methods and molecular modeling methods at physiological pH and 298 K. Critical micelle concentrations (CMCs) of the three surfactants have been determined by surface tension measurements. Despite the obvious decrease of CMC with the increase of tail length, fluorescence spectra have shown much closer CAC in the presence of BSA. Surfactant II shows the highest CAC of 3.19 × 10(-5) mol L(-1) compared with the other two. The polarity of the microenvironment in BSA-surfactant systems has been investigated using pyrene as the probe. In addition, far-UV CD spectra studied the change of the secondary structure content of BSA caused by the three surfactants. The features of the assembly behavior were discussed by three concentration regions. Surfactant II could unfold the protein much more efficiently than the other two surfactants at low concentration, but at high concentration, the change of the secondary structure and the formation of hydrophobic microenvironment show a direct relationship to the length of the hydrophobic tail with the increase of the surfactant concentration.

Probing the adverse temperature dependence in the static fluorescence quenching of BSA induced by a novel anticancer hydrazone.

A novel hydrazone, 2-hydroxy-N'-(3-hydroxybenzylidene) benzohydrazide (HHB), has been designed, synthesized and characterized. HHB was designed to be an analogue of 311 and PIH with potential anticancer activity, and the IC(50) towards HeLa cell was about 3.46 × 10(-5) mol(-1) L. The interactions of HHB with bovine serum albumin (BSA) had been investigated systematically by spectroscopy, electrochemistry, and molecular modeling under simulative physiological conditions. HHB bound BSA in the sub-domains IIA to form a ground-state complex, inducing the quenching of the intrinsic fluorescence emission, the change of absorption spectrum and the increase of electrical resistance of BSA. An adverse temperature dependence in the fluorescence quenching was detected and discussed to be a reasonable consequence of the big E(a) requirement to overcome the obstructive amino acid residues in the entrance to the binding site, which were closely related to the natural structure of BSA and the molecular shape of HHB. The impact of metal ions, including Fe(2+), Fe(3+), Cu(2+), Mg(2+), Zn(2+), Ca(2+) and Al(3+), towards the interactions of HHB and BSA has been investigated and they were found to affect the HHB-BSA interactions in a mild way.

Comparison of accuracy between digital and conventional implant impressions: two and three dimensional evaluations.

PURPOSE: The present study compared the accuracy between digital and conventional implant impressions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The experimental models were divided into six groups depending on the implant location and the scanning span. Digital impressions were captured using the intraoral optical scanner TRIOS (3Shape, Copenhagen, Denmark). Conventional impressions were taken with the monophase impression material based on addition-cured silicones, Honigum-Mono (DMG, Hamburg, Germany). A high-precision laboratory scanner D900 (3Shape, Copenhagen, Denmark) was used to obtain digital data of resin models and stone casts. Surface tessellation language (STL) datasets from scanner were imported into the analysis software Geomagic Qualify 14 (3D Systems, Rock Hill, SC, USA), and scan body deviations were determined through two-dimensional and three-dimensional analyses. Each scan body was measured five times. The Sidak t test was used to analyze the experimental data. RESULTS: Implant position and scanning distance affected the impression accuracy. For a unilateral arch implant and the mandible models with two implants, no significant difference was observed in the accuracy between the digital and conventional implant impressions on scan bodies; however, the corresponding differences for trans-arch implants and mandible with six implants were extremely significant (P<.001). CONCLUSION: For short-span scanning, the accuracy of digital and conventional implant impressions did not differ significantly. For long-span scanning, the precision of digital impressions was significantly inferior to that of the traditional impressions.

Altered brain activation during reward anticipation in bipolar disorder.

Although altered reward sensitivity has been observed in individuals with bipolar disorder (BD), the brain function findings related to reward processing remain unexplored and inconsistent. This meta-analysis aimed to identify brain activation alterations underlying reward anticipation in BD. A systematic literature research was conducted to identify fMRI studies of reward-relevant tasks performed by BD individuals. Using Anisotropic Effect Size Signed Differential Mapping, whole-brain and ROI of the ventral striatum (VS) coordinate-based meta-analyses were performed to explore brain regions showing anomalous activation in individuals with BD compared to healthy controls (HC), respectively. A total of 21 studies were identified in the meta-analysis, 15 of which were included in the whole-brain meta-analysis and 17 in the ROI meta-analysis. The whole-brain meta-analysis revealed hypoactivation in the bilateral angular gyrus and right inferior frontal gyrus during reward anticipation in individuals with BD compared to HC. No significant activation differences were observed in bilateral VS between two groups by whole-brain or ROI-based meta-analysis. Individuals with BD type I and individuals with euthymic BD showed altered activation in prefrontal, angular, fusiform, middle occipital gyrus, and striatum. Hypoactivation in the right angular gyrus was positively correlated with the illness duration of BD. The present study reveals the potential neural mechanism underlying impairment in reward anticipation in BD. Some clinical features such as clinical subtype, mood state, and duration of illness confound the underlying neurobiological abnormality reward anticipation in BD. These findings may have implications for identifying clinically relevant biomarkers to guide intervention strategies for BD.