Oxytocin treatment for core symptoms in children with autism spectrum disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this article is to examine the efficacy of oxytocin in treating core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with children. METHODS: A systematic literature search was conducted to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of oxytocin for the treatment of core symptoms in children with ASD. The search included studies published between January 1, 1999 and March 15, 2023, that were randomized, single or double-blinded, and included a placebo control group. Standard screening rules were applied to select relevant studies, resulting in the inclusion of five RCTs involving 486 children with ASD. RESULTS: Ultimately, a total of five RCTs, involving 486 children with ASD, were included in the review using standard screening rules.One of the included studies demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) and Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS) scores when children with ASD were treated with oxytocin (24 IU/2 days for 6 weeks). The improvement in core symptoms persisted at the 6-month follow-up. The meta-analysis findings suggested that oxytocin might have a moderate effect in improving the core symptom of narrow interests and repetitive stereotyped behaviors in children with ASD. CONCLUSION: While the therapeutic value of oxytocin in treating core symptoms of ASD in children is not fully established, the results of this meta-analysis indicate a potential moderate effect. However, further studies with larger sample sizes and more robust RCTs are needed to directly demonstrate the efficacy of oxytocin. Future research should also focus on effect size and outcome evaluation accuracy while minimizing bias in RCT experiments.

Design, Synthesis, Biological Evaluation and Molecular Docking Studies of Quercetin-Linker-H2 S Donor Conjugates for the Treatment of Diabetes and Wound Healing.

Based on the use of quercetin for treating diabetes and H2 S for promoting wound healing, a series of three quercetin-linker-H2 S donor conjugates was designed, synthesized and characterized by 1 H-NMR, 13 C-NMR and MS. Meanwhile, in vitro evaluation of these compounds was also researched by IR-HepG2 treatment experiment, MTT assay, scratch test and tubule formation experiment. The three compounds could be used to treat insulin resistance induced by high glucose and promote the proliferation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells, wound healing, and the formation of tubules in vitro under a high-glucose environment. Our results illustrate that these compounds could be used to treat diabetes and promote wound healing at the same time. Furthermore, molecular docking study results of the compounds were consistent with the evaluated biological activity. In vivo research of compounds is underway.

Metabolic Engineering of Microbial Cell Factories for Biosynthesis of Flavonoids: A Review.

Flavonoids belong to a class of plant secondary metabolites that have a polyphenol structure. Flavonoids show extensive biological activity, such as antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-mutagenic, anti-cancer, and antibacterial properties, so they are widely used in the food, pharmaceutical, and nutraceutical industries. However, traditional sources of flavonoids are no longer sufficient to meet current demands. In recent years, with the clarification of the biosynthetic pathway of flavonoids and the development of synthetic biology, it has become possible to use synthetic metabolic engineering methods with microorganisms as hosts to produce flavonoids. This article mainly reviews the biosynthetic pathways of flavonoids and the development of microbial expression systems for the production of flavonoids in order to provide a useful reference for further research on synthetic metabolic engineering of flavonoids. Meanwhile, the application of co-culture systems in the biosynthesis of flavonoids is emphasized in this review.

The Application of the First Year Inventory for ASD Screening in China.

PURPOSE: The First Year Inventory (FYI) is a parent-report instrument, and is developed to assess behaviors of 12-month-old infants that could suggest risk for an eventual diagnosis of autism. This study was designed to examine the application of the FYI in the Chinese community. DESIGN AND METHODS: FYIs were completed at a community health center by 541 families during the child's physical examination at 12 months of age from 2013 to 2015. The weighted risk scores used in this study were based on US norms, and compared the FYI differences between China and the U.S. RESULTS: The total risk scores ranged from 5 to 42 points; the 95th percentile cutoff was 27.00(9.8 points higher than the 95th percentile cutoff in the US), the 98th percentile cutoff was 29.66(7.04 points higher than the 98th percentile cutoff in the US), and the 99th percentile cutoff was 31.83. Higher risk scores were found for boys than girls. Mothers with a junior college education reported significantly higher FYI risk scores than other three groups including high school, college graduates and post-graduates. CONCLUSIONS: There were no significant effects of birth parity, investigator, or investigation year on risk scores. Large-scale longitudinal research is encouraged in the future to develop an early detection model of autism in China.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SERUM 25-HYDROXYVITAMIN D AND GLUCOSE HOMEOSTASIS IN OBESE CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS IN ZHEJIANG, CHINA.

OBJECTIVE: Evidence of the association between vitamin D, insulin resistance, and oral disposition index (oDI) in obese children and adolescents is limited. To fill this research gap, we measured serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) levels in obese children and analyzed the relationship between serum 25(OH)D levels and glucose homeostasis. METHODS: Altogether, 348 obese and 445 nonobese children and adolescents (age, 6 to 16 years) were enrolled in this study. Obese children were divided into 4 subgroups: normal glucose tolerance (NGT), impaired fasting glucose (IFG), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), and combined IFG and IGT (IFG+IGT) according to oral glucose tolerance test results. We measured serum 25(OH)D levels and calculated the homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) of insulin resistance (IR), the whole-body insulin sensitivity index (WBISI), and the disposition index. RESULTS: The levels of 25(OH)D in the obese group were significantly lower than in the nonobese group; serum 25(OH)D level in the NGT subgroup was higher than those of the other 3 subgroups, and it was significantly inversely correlated with logHOMA-IR (r = -0.090; P = .045) and positively correlated with logWBISI and logHOMA-oDI (r = 0.091, P = .049; and r = 0.108, P = .046, respectively). Obese patients with vitamin D deficiency thus have a significantly higher risk of disturbances in glucose metabolism. CONCLUSION: 25(OH)D deficiency or insufficiency is quite common in obese children and adolescents in Zhejiang, China. Obese patients with 25(OH)D deficiency (<30 nmol/L) are shown to be at higher risk for abnormal glucose metabolism.

Influence of parental education on the intelligence quotient profiles and socially adaptive behavior of school-age children with autism spectrum disorder in eastern China. / 父母教育水平对中国东部地区孤独症谱系障碍学龄儿童智力及社会适应行为的影响.

Intelligence quotient (IQ) and adaptive behavior are the influencing factors of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children entering mainstream schools. This study explored the association between parental education level, IQ, and adaptive behavior in ASD groups. A total of 257 school-age ASD children were enrolled in our study from January 2017 to June 2021. Their parents completed a standard demographic form, including age at autism diagnosis, gender, school placement, and parents' educational background. The Chinese version of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) was completed by a certified assessor for each enrolled child. Parents were interviewed on adaptive behavior using the Chinese version of the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System, Second Edition (ABAS-II). The average IQ of school-age ASD children was 76.88 (standard deviation (SD)=22.62) and boys had higher IQ levels than girls. The IQ was positively correlated with age. The General Adaptive Composite (GAC) score was 82.47 (SD=15.86) and adaptive behavior did not increase with age. ASD children who attended mainstream schools had better adaptive behavior profiles than other children. The mother's education level showed a significant correlation with the IQ and adaptive behavior of autistic children, while the father's education level did not. Consequently, better training and support for parents may help autistic children enter mainstream schools, with adaptive training being the most urgently required skill for parents.

Photodynamic antibacterial research on hypericin-loaded PEGylated mesoporous silica delivery system.

In this study, a novel drug delivery system (MSN-PEG-Hypericin) was successfully fabricated using tetraethyl orthosilicate and 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane as raw materials, and the PEGylation of the prepared aminated mesoporous silica and grafting of hypericin onto the carrier were further conducted to obtain MSN-PEG-Hypericin. The successful preparation of MSN-PEG-Hypericin was characterized by several physical-chemical techniques. Furthermore, the MSN-PEG-Hypericin system increased the ability of hypericin to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) in vitro. The cytotoxicity assay and hemolysis analysis showed that MSN-PEG-Hypericin had good biocompatibility. For antibacterial studies, the irradiation time and incubation time of photodynamic therapy (PDT) for S. aureus and E. coli were respectively 8 min and 8 h, and the concentrations of hypericin were 2.5 and 5 µg/mL. The result of triphenyl tetrazolium chloride assay indicated that MSN-PEG-Hypericin had stronger photodynamic antibacterial activity than free hypericin, and S. aureus was more sensitive to PDT than E. coli, which was related to their cell structural differences. The antibacterial mechanism study indicated that the generated ROS could destroy the bacterial structures and cause bacterial death due to the leakage of the contents. The MSN-PEG-Hypericin system prepared in this study had potential application prospects in the antibacterial field.

Controllable Fabrication of Hydrophilic Surface Micro/Nanostructures of CFRP by Femtosecond Laser.

Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP), a highly engineered lightweight material with superior properties, is widely used in industrial fields, such as aerospace, automobile, and railway transportation, as well as medical implants and supercapacitor. This work presents an effective surface treatment method for the controllable fabrication of hydrophilic surface micro/nanostructures of CFRP through femtosecond laser processing. Selective removal of the epoxy resin and leaving the carbon fibers exposed are achieved when CFRP is weakly ablated by a femtosecond laser. The diameters and structures of the carbon fibers can be controlled by adjusting the laser processing parameters. Three-dimensional surface micro/nanostructures are processed when CFRP is strongly ablated by a femtosecond laser. Meanwhile, the transformation of the sp2 orbitals to sp3 orbitals of graphitic carbons of carbon fibers is induced by a femtosecond laser. Moreover, the investigation of surface roughness and wettability of femtosecond laser-processed CFRP indicates increased roughness and excellent hydrophilicity (a contact angle of 28.1°). This work reveals the effect of femtosecond laser processing on the regulation of the physicochemical properties of CFRP, which can be applicable to surface treatment and performance control of other fiber-resin composites. The excellent hydrophilicity will be conducive to the combination of CFRP with other materials or to reducing the friction resistance of CFRP used in medical implants.

A machine learning-based diagnostic model for children with autism spectrum disorders complicated with intellectual disability.

Background: Early detection of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and comorbid intellectual disability (ID) can help in individualized intervention. Appropriate assessment and diagnostic tools are lacking in primary care. This study aims to explore the applicability of machine learning (ML) methods in diagnosing ASD comorbid ID compared with traditional regression models. Method: From January 2017 to December 2021, 241 children with ASD, with an average age of 6.41 ± 1.96, diagnosed in the Developmental Behavior Department of the Children's Hospital Affiliated with the Medical College of Zhejiang University were included in the analysis. This study trained the traditional diagnostic models of Logistic regression (LR), Support Vector Machine (SVM), and two ensemble learning algorithms [Random Forest (RF) and XGBoost]. Socio-demographic and behavioral observation data were used to distinguish whether autistic children had combined ID. The hyperparameters adjustment uses grid search and 10-fold validation. The Boruta method is used to select variables. The model's performance was evaluated using discrimination, calibration, and decision curve analysis (DCA). Result: Among 241 autistic children, 98 (40.66%) were ASD comorbid ID. The four diagnostic models can better distinguish whether autistic children are complicated with ID, and the accuracy of SVM is the highest (0.836); SVM and XGBoost have better accuracy (0.800, 0.838); LR has the best sensitivity (0.939), followed by SVM (0.952). Regarding specificity, SVM, RF, and XGBoost performed significantly higher than LR (0.355). The AUC of ML (SVM, 0.835 [95% CI: 0.747-0.944]; RF, 0.829 [95% CI: 0.738-0.920]; XGBoost, 0.845 [95% CI: 0.734-0.937]) is not different from traditional LR (0.858 [95% CI: 0.770-0.944]). Only SVM observed a good calibration degree. Regarding DCA, LR, and SVM have higher benefits in a wider threshold range. Conclusion: Compared to the traditional regression model, ML model based on socio-demographic and behavioral observation data, especially SVM, has a better ability to distinguish whether autistic children are combined with ID.

Intelligence profiles and adaptive behaviors of high-functioning autism spectrum disorder and developmental speech and language disorders.

Objective: The present study was aimed at investigating the intelligence profiles and adaptive behaviors of children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (HFASD) and developmental speech and language disorders (DSLDs). We compared the similarities and differences of cognitive capabilities and adaptive functions and explored their correlations in the HFASD and DSLDs groups. Methods: 128 patients with HFASD, 111 patients with DSLDs and 114 typically developing (TD) children were enrolled into our study. Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-IV (WISC-IV) and Adaptive Behavior Assessment System-II (ABAS-II) were respectively applied to evaluate intelligence profiles and adaptive behaviors. Intelligence quotient (IQ) scores and adaptive functioning scores among the HFASD, DSLDs and TD groups were compared through one-way ANOVA. Pearson correlation coefficient was applied to examine the relationships between WISC indices and ABAS domains. Results: Outcomes showed significantly poorer intelligence profiles and adaptive behaviors in HFASD and DSLDs groups. Both children with HFASD and DSLDs demonstrated impairments in verbal comprehension and executive functions. Processing speed and working memory were the predominant defects of children with HFASD and DSLDs in the field of executive functions, respectively. Whereas perceptual reasoning was a relative strength for them. Children with DSLDs had balanced scores of all the domains in ABAS-II; nevertheless, HFASD individuals demonstrated striking impairments in Social domain. Correlation analysis showed IQs of children with HFASD were positively correlated with all the domains and General Adaptive Composite (GAC) of ABAS-II. Additionally, IQs were positively correlated with Conceptual domain and GAC for children with DSLDs. Compared with DSLDs group, intelligence displayed stronger correlations with adaptive behaviors in HFASD group. Conclusion: Our study expanded insights regarding intelligence profiles and adaptive behaviors of children with HFASD and DSLDs. Moreover, this study made breakthroughs in discovering positive correlations between IQs and adaptive functions in the two neurodevelopmental disorders.

A new diterpene from the stems of Manihot esculenta.

A new diterpene, named yucalexin P-23 (1), together with three known compounds, yucalexin P-15 (2), protocatechuic acid (3), and catalpinic acid (4), was isolated from the stems of Manihot esculenta. Their structures were determined by means of physicochemical evidence and spectral analysis. Compounds 3 and 4 exhibited antimicrobial activity.

Antioxidant phenolic compounds of cassava (Manihot esculenta) from Hainan.

An activity-directed fractionation and purification process was used to isolate antioxidant components from cassava stems produced in Hainan. The ethyl acetate and n-butanol fractions showed greater DPPH˙and ABTS·+ scavenging activities than other fractions. The ethyl acetate fraction was subjected to column chromatography, to yield ten phenolic compounds: Coniferaldehyde (1), isovanillin (2), 6-deoxyjacareubin (3), scopoletin (4), syringaldehyde (5), pinoresinol (6), p-coumaric acid (7), ficusol (8), balanophonin (9) and ethamivan (10), which possess significant antioxidant activities. The relative order of DPPH· scavenging capacity for these compounds was ascorbic acid (reference) > 6 > 1 > 8 > 10 > 9 > 3 > 4 > 7 > 5 > 2, and that of ABTS·+ scavenging capacity was 5 > 7 > 1 > 10 > 4 > 6 > 8 > 2 > Trolox (reference compound) > 3 > 9. The results showed that these phenolic compounds contributed to the antioxidant activity of cassava.