Author Correction: Neuroprotectants attenuate hypobaric hypoxia-induced brain injuries in cynomolgus monkeys.

Following the publication of our paper (Zhang et al., 2020), it has come to our attention that we erroneously listed two funding sources unrelated to this study in the "ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS" section. Hereby, we wish to update the "ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS" section as a correction.

Neuroprotectants attenuate hypobaric hypoxia-induced brain injuries in cynomolgus monkeys.

Hypobaric hypoxia (HH) exposure can cause serious brain injury as well as life-threatening cerebral edema in severe cases. Previous studies on the mechanisms of HH-induced brain injury have been conducted primarily using non-primate animal models that are genetically distant to humans, thus hindering the development of disease treatment. Here, we report that cynomolgus monkeys ( Macacafascicularis) exposed to acute HH developed human-like HH syndrome involving severe brain injury and abnormal behavior. Transcriptome profiling of white blood cells and brain tissue from monkeys exposed to increasing altitude revealed the central role of the HIF-1 and other novel signaling pathways, such as the vitamin D receptor (VDR) signaling pathway, in co-regulating HH-induced inflammation processes. We also observed profound transcriptomic alterations in brains after exposure to acute HH, including the activation of angiogenesis and impairment of aerobic respiration and protein folding processes, which likely underlie the pathological effects of HH-induced brain injury. Administration of progesterone (PROG) and steroid neuroprotectant 5α-androst-3ß,5,6ß-triol (TRIOL) significantly attenuated brain injuries and rescued the transcriptomic changes induced by acute HH. Functional investigation of the affected genes suggested that these two neuroprotectants protect the brain by targeting different pathways, with PROG enhancing erythropoiesis and TRIOL suppressing glutamate-induced excitotoxicity. Thus, this study advances our understanding of the pathology induced by acute HH and provides potential compounds for the development of neuroprotectant drugs for therapeutic treatment.

[Appropriate application of statistical methods in physiological research].

OBJECTIVE: To offer a series of efficient methods to physiologists in appropriate selection, and application of statistical techniques. METHODS: We bring about two questions as follows:What's the role of statistics in the process of a physiological research? How to make sure the results produced in a physiological research can be repeatable in practice in the long run. From the answers to these two questions, we highlight the importance of the discipline of statistics to research work, explain why it is difficult, how to choose a suitable statistical method in a specific situation, and offer the critical methods to use statistics accurately and appropriately. RESULTS: We abstract three core sections from the discipline of statistics:how to make the design of a study impeccable; How to strictly follow the protocol of a study, and How to draw conclusions well reasoned and strongly supported by evidence. By elaborating these sections, it is feasible to correctly use statistical methods for data analysis and results interpretation. CONCLUSIONS: In physiological research, conclusion can stand with time and repeatable in practice only when researchers strictly and rigorously follow the rule of scientific research.

[How to scientifically estimate sample size in physiological research].

OBJECTIVE: To bring about physiological researchers' attention of the importance of sample size estimation. METHODS: The significance as well as the current problems of sample size estimation were illustrated and the commonly-used sample size estimation methods were introduced. RESULTS: The basic concepts and necessary premises of sample size estimation were stated. The estimation processes and results under two different circumstances were elaborated in detail via examples. CONCLUSIONS: To attain the proper estimated sample sizes, the computation must satisfy the necessary premises which included the appropriate statistical analysis methods to be used.