Prediabetes and the incidence of Parkinson's disease: A meta-analysis.

Diabetes has been associated with an elevated risk of Parkinson's disease (PD), yet the relationship between prediabetes (PreD) and the incidence of PD in the adult population remains unclear. Therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate if PreD is also associated with a higher risk of PD. We conducted comprehensive searches of the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases to identify relevant observational studies with longitudinal follow-up. The random-effects model was employed to synthesize the data, mitigating the potential impact of study heterogeneity on the outcomes. Our analysis incorporated seven datasets from five cohort studies, encompassing 18,170,592 adult participants without a PD diagnosis at baseline. Among them, 2,432,148 (13.3%) had PreD. During the follow-up, a total of 46,682 patients were diagnosed with PD. The pooled results indicated that PreD was associated with an increased incidence of PD (risk ratio [RR] 1.09, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.02 - 1.16; P = 0.02; I2 = 52%), after adjusting for potential confounding factors such as age, sex, body mass index (BMI), and smoking. Subsequent pilot subgroup analyses suggested that the association between PreD and PD might not be significantly influenced by the country of the study, its design, age or sex of the participants, definition of PreD, or the quality scores of the study (P for subgroup difference all > 0.05). In conclusion, adult population with PreD may have a mildly increased risk of developing PD compared to those with normoglycemia.

Clinical and imaging markers for the prognosis of acute ischemic stroke.

Background and purpose: Significant differences in the outcomes observed in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) have led to research investigations for identifying the predictors. In this retrospective study, we aimed to investigate the relationship of different clinical and imaging factors with the prognosis of AIS. Materials and methods: All clinical and imaging metrics were compared between the good and poor prognosis groups according to the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score at 90 days after discharge. Clinical factors included gender, age, NIHSS scores at admission, and other medical history risk factors. Imaging markers included the lesion's size and location, diffusion, and perfusion metrics of infarction core and peripheral regions, and the state of collateral circulation. Spearman's correlations were analyzed for age and imaging markers between the different groups. The Chi-square test and Cramer's V coefficient analysis were performed for gender, collateral circulation status, NIHSS score, and other stroke risk factors. Results: A total of 89 patients with AIS were divided into the good (mRS score ≤ 2) and poor prognosis groups (mRS score ≥ 3). There were differences in NIHSS score at the admission; relative MK (rMK), relative MD (rMD), relative CBF (rCBF) of the infarction core; relative mean transit time (rMTT), relative time to peak (rTTP), and relative CBF (rCBF) of peripheral regions; and collateral circulation status between the two groups (p < 0.05). Among them, the rMK of infarction lesions had the strongest correlation with the mRS score at 90 days after discharge (r = 0.545, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Perfusion and diffusion metrics could reflect the microstructure and blood flow characteristics of the lesion, which were the key factors for the salvage ability and prognosis of the infarction tissue. The characteristics of the infarction core and peripheral regions have different effects on the outcomes. Diffusion of infarction core has strong relations with the prognosis, whereas the time metrics (MTT, TTP) were more important for peripheral regions. MK had a more significant association with prognosis than MD. These factors were the primary markers influencing the prognosis of cerebral infarction patients.

Ulinastatin Inhibits the Proliferation, Invasion and Phenotypic Switching of PDGF-BB-Induced VSMCs via Akt/eNOS/NO/cGMP Signaling Pathway.

BACKGROUND: Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease responsible for thrombosis, blood supply disorders, myocardial infarction and strokes, eventually leading to increased deaths and reduced quality of life. As inflammation plays a vital role in the development of this disease, the present study aims to investigate whether urinary trypsin inhibitor (UTI) with anti-inflammatory property can inhibit the proliferation, invasion and phenotypic switching of PDGF-BB-induced vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and probe its potential mechanism. METHODS: Western blot was used to detect the expressions of the proteins related to the Akt/eNOS/NO/cGMP signaling pathway, phenotypic switching and proliferation. CCK-8 assay and EdU staining were used to detect cell proliferation of VSMCs. Transwell and wound healing assays were respectively conducted to measure the invasion and migration of VSMCs. The concentration of NO was evaluated by NO detection kit. ELISA assay analyzed the expression of cyclic GMP (cGMP). RESULTS: The expressions of p-Akt and p-eNOS were elevated by UTI treatment. Furthermore, UTI inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of VSMCs. UTI also increased the expressions of proteins related to phenotypic switching. The amount of NO and expression of cGMP were both elevated under UTI treatment. CONCLUSION: UTI inhibits the proliferation, invasion and phenotypic switching of PDGF-BB-induced VSMCs via Akt/eNOS/NO/cGMP signaling pathway, which might provide a theoretical basis for the UTI treatment of atherosclerosis.

[Psychological and physical presentations of severe acute respiratory syndrome].

OBJECTIVE: To study the relation between psychological symptoms and physical parameters in patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) at different stages of the disease. METHODS: Physical parameters such as SCL-90, chest CT, T lymphocytes and subset and SaO2 were studied in 29 SARS patients at three different stages (initial stage, serious stage, rehabilitating stage). RESULTS: Patients with SARS showing severe psychological symptoms constituted about 41% (group I) and patients with SARS showing mild psychological symptoms (group II) constituted about 59%. There were no change of the psychological symptoms at the three stages in group I and II (P > 0.05). Statistical differences were found between physical parameters of group I and II in rehabilitating stage. CONCLUSIONS: Severe psychological symptoms such as obsession, depression and anxiety were found in a minority of patients with SARS and the psychological symptoms were not related with the change of physical parameters. The majority of the patients with SARS did not have severe psychological symptoms. Whether or not psychological symptoms were related to their personality needs further study.

Establishment of a predictive model of serum glucose changes under different exercise intensities and durations among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Regular exercise is regarded as one of necessary elements in treating diabetes mellitus (DM). The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of different exercise intensities and durations on serum glucose changes after exercise in type 2 DM patients and to establish a predictive model of changes in serum glucose under different exercise intensities and durations. Thirty-seven type 2 DM patients were recruited from four teaching hospitals. A total of 12 exercise sessions were scheduled according to the results of a graded treadmill exercise test. The 12 exercise sessions were designed on the basis of different exercise intensities (40%, 60%, and 80% maximal workload) and exercise durations (10, 20, 30, and 40 min). Serum glucose level was measured before and after exercise. The findings indicate that the main effect of exercise intensity and duration was significant, but there was no interaction effect. All four variables, including exercise intensity, exercise duration, pre-exercise serum glucose levels, and gender, explained 37% of the variance in serum glucose changes after exercise. In conclusion, a dose-response relationship between exercise amount and serum glucose changes was demonstrated. This is helpful for health professionals to teach type 2 DM patients how to predict serum glucose response in different exercise situations.

[Studies on the chemical constituents of Angelica sinensis].

AIM: To investigate the chemical components of Agelica sinensis. METHODS: Chromatographic technologies were used for separation and purification, while spectral analysis was measured for structure elucidation. RESULTS: Five compounds were isolated and their structures were identified as Homosenkyunolide H (1), Homosenkyunolide I(2), Neoligustilide (3), 6-methoxycoumarin (4), Hypoxanthine-9-beta-D-ribofuranoside (5). CONCLUSION: Compounds 1 and 2 are new compounds. Compounds 3, 4 and 5 were isolated from Agelica sinensis for the first time.

Effects of leukemia inhibitory factor and basic fibroblast growth factor on free radicals and endogenous stem cell proliferation in a mouse model of cerebral infarction.

The present study established a mouse model of cerebral infarction by middle cerebral artery occlusion, and monitored the effect of 25 µg/kg leukemia inhibitory factor and (or) basic fibroblast growth factor administration 2 hours after model establishment. Results showed that following administration, the number of endogenous neural stem cells in the infarct area significantly increased, malondialdehyde content in brain tissue homogenates significantly decreased, nitric oxide content, glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activity significantly elevated, and mouse motor function significantly improved as confirmed by the rotarod and bar grab tests. In particular, the effect of leukemia inhibitory factor in combination with basic fibroblast growth factor was the most significant. Results indicate that leukemia inhibitory factor and basic fibroblast growth factor can improve the microenvironment after cerebral infarction by altering free radical levels, improving the quantity of endogenous neural stem cells, and promoting neurological function of mice with cerebral infarction.

Basic fibroblast growth factor increases the number of endogenous neural stem cells and inhibits the expression of amino methyl isoxazole propionic acid receptors in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis mice.

This study aimed to investigate the number of amino methyl isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA) receptors and production of endogenous neural stem cells in the SOD1(G93AG1H) transgenic mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, at postnatal day 60 following administration of basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF-2). A radioligand binding assay and immunohistochemistry were used to estimate the number of AMPA receptors and endogenous neural stem cells respectively. Results showed that the number of AMPA receptors and endogenous neural stem cells in the brain stem and sensorimotor cortex were significantly increased, while motor function was significantly decreased at postnatal days 90 and 120. After administration of FGF-2 into mice, numbers of endogenous neural stem cells increased, while expression of AMPA receptors decreased, whilst motor functions were recovered. At postnatal day 120, the number of AMPA receptors was negatively correlated with the number of endogenous neural stem cells in model mice and FGF-2-treated mice. Our experimental findings indicate that FGF-2 can inhibit AMPA receptors and increase the number of endogenous neural stem cells, thus repairing neural injury in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis mice.