ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Socioeconomic status (SES) plays a crucial role in blood pressure (BP) control. SES may influence BP control through obesity indices, such as body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC). This study aimed to understand the relationships between SES and BP control in the elderly hypertensive population, and to determine whether BMI and WC mediate the relationship between SES and BP control. METHODS: The study was conducted in Jia County, Henan Province, China, from 1 July to 31 August 2023. The 18,963 hypertensive people over 65 years old who were included in the National Basic Public Health Service Program were investigated. The study utilized questionnaire surveys to collect data on participants' demographic characteristics, disease history, lifestyle behaviors, antihypertensive medication, and measured height, weight, and blood pressure. SES was indexed by participants' self-reported educational level, family income, and occupation, and categorized into low, medium, and high groups by using latent category analysis (LCA). Logistic regression models were used to analyze the associations between SES and BP control. Obesity indicators, represented by BMI and WC, were included in mediation models to examine the indirect effects of BMI/WC on the association between SES and BP control. RESULTS: The mean age of 17,234 participants was 73.4 years and 9888 (57.4%) of the participants were female. The LCA results indicated the number of participants in low SES, middle SES, and high SES groups were 7760, 8347, and 1127, respectively. Compared with the low SES group, the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the association of BP control with middle SES and high SES were 1.101 (1.031, 1.175), and 1.492 (1.312, 1.696). This association was similarly found in the subsequent subgroup analyses (p < 0.05). Compared with low SES, our findings further suggested that BMI (indirect effects: 95% CIs: -0.004--0.001; p < 0.001) and WC (indirect effects: 95% CIs: -0.003--0.001; p = 0.020) play a suppressing role in the association between high SES and BP control. CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicated that the elderly hypertensive population with high SES may have a better result for BP control. However, we found that BMI/WC plays a suppressing role in this association. This indicated that despite the better BP control observed in elderly hypertensive populations with high SES, BMI and WC might undermine this beneficial relationship. Therefore, implementing strategies for obesity prevention is an efficient way to maintain this beneficial association between high SES and BP control.
Subject(s)
Blood Pressure , Body Mass Index , Hypertension , Obesity , Social Class , Waist Circumference , Humans , Female , Hypertension/epidemiology , Male , Aged , Obesity/epidemiology , China/epidemiology , Aged, 80 and over , Risk Factors , Antihypertensive Agents/therapeutic useABSTRACT
The objective of this study was to explore the dynamic changes in the gut microbiota of Simmental calves before weaning and to compare the microbial composition and functionality between healthy calves and those with diarrhea. Fourteen neonatal Simmental calves were divided into a healthy group (n = 8) and a diarrhea group (n = 6). Rectal stool samples were collected from each calf on days 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12, 15, 18, 22, 26, 30, 35, and 40. High-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene V1-V9 region was conducted to examine changes in the gut microbiota over time in both groups and to assess the influence of diarrhea on microbiota structure and function. Escherichia coli, Bacteroides fragilis, and B. vulgatus were the top three bacterial species in preweaning Simmental calves. Meanwhile, the major functions of the fecal microbiota included "metabolic pathways", "biosynthesis of secondary metabolites", "biosynthesis of antibiotics", "microbial metabolism in diverse environments", and "biosynthesis of amino acids". For calves in the healthy group, PCoA revealed that the bacterial profiles on days 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 differed from those on days 15, 18, 22, 26, 30, 35, and 40. The profiles on day 12 clustered with both groups, indicating that microbial structure changes increased with age. When comparing the relative abundance of bacteria between healthy and diarrheic calves, the beneficial Lactobacillus johnsonii, Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, and Limosilactobacillus were significantly more abundant in the healthy group than those in the diarrhea group (p < 0.05). This study provides fundamental insights into the gut microbiota composition of Simmental calves before weaning, potentially facilitating early interventions for calf diarrhea and probiotic development.
ABSTRACT
Skin is critical for shaping our interactions with the environment. The electronic skin (E-skin) has emerged as a promising interface for medical devices to replicate the functions of damaged skin. However, exploration of thermal perception, which is crucial for physiological sensing, has been limited. In this work, a multifunctional E-skin based on flexible thermoelectric Ag2Se films is proposed, which utilizes the Seebeck effect to replicate the sensory functions of natural skin. The E-skin can enable capabilities including temperature perception, tactile perception, contactless perception, and material recognition by analyzing the thermal conduction behaviors of various materials. To further validate the capabilities of constructed E-skins, a wearable device with multiple sensory channels was fabricated and tested for gesture recognition. This work highlights the potential for using flexible thermoelectric materials in advanced biomedical applications including health monitoring and smart prosthetics.
Subject(s)
Wearable Electronic Devices , Skin , Prostheses and Implants , Electronics , PerceptionABSTRACT
The ongoing development of ratiometric optical thermometry is mainly trapped in thermally coupled levels of rare-earth ions and inefficient ultraviolet excitation. Herein, a new-type multiple sharp line emitting, blue light-excited K2NaInF6:Mn4+, Eu3+ fluoride phosphor has been reported as a ratiometric thermometer. The f-f transition of Eu3+ paves a steady reference to a highly temperature sensitive Mn4+d-d transition and enables high relative sensitivity of 1.65% K-1 at 573â K. An optical fiber thermometry on a household oven with a relative standard deviation of 0.11% surpasses the standard of precision measurement, showing great potential in practical application. This discovery offers a highly sensitive neotype blue light-excitable ratiometric temperature sensor, that is Mn4+-doped fluoride, promoting practical applications of optical thermometry.
ABSTRACT
Luminescent bulk crystals exhibit fewer grain boundaries and defects compared with conventional microsized powdery ones. Herein, targeting Mn4+-activated fluoride crystals with a sharp line-type red luminescence spectrum, we propose a new cooling-induced crystallization method to grow the fluoride crystals. By this new method, we successfully grew millimeter-sized K2MnF6:Si4+, NH4+ crystals, featuring an AEmax (absorption efficiency) of 93.5% and an EQEmax (external quantum efficiency) of 68.9%, which are among the best values for Mn4+-activated fluoride red phosphors. The influence of doping Si4+ and/or NH4+ in K2MnF6 on the local coordination structure and luminescence properties was studied. The anomalous thermal quenching behaviors were discussed, the luminescence decay from the excited state was compared, and the origin for the high quantum efficiencies was analyzed.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy reduces vaccination rates, which is detrimental to building herd immunity and halting the spread of COVID-19 and its variations. Most researches have simply identified the reasons affecting COVID-19 vaccination reluctance without delving into its dynamics, which makes forecasting future trends difficult. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine the current COVID-19 vaccine booster hesitancy rate in Chinese adults as well as the dynamics of vaccine hesitancy and its influencing factors. The results of this study will have practical implications for policy responses in mainland China, and effective COVID-19 booster vaccination in specific populations. METHODS: The web-based survey was completed by creating questionnaires and using a stratified random sampling method to collect information from adults (≥18 years old) among 2556 households in 4 geographical regions of China. We collected sociodemographic information, health status, awareness of COVID-19 and its vaccine, self-perceptions, trust in medical staff and vaccine developers, and so on. The odds ratios and 95% CI for the statistical associations were estimated using logistic regression models. RESULTS: Overall, 6659 participants (females: n=3540, 53.2%; males: n=3119, 46.8%) responded. In total, 533 (8%; 95% CI 7.4%-8.7%) participants presented a clear hesitancy in receiving the COVID-19 booster vaccination, while 736 (11.1%; 95% CI 10.3%-11.8%) expressed hesitancy in regular booster vaccination. A higher prevalence of vaccine hesitancy in both booster vaccination and regular booster vaccination was observed among participants with a history of allergies, experiencing chronic disease, lower levels of public health prevention measures or susceptibility or benefits or self-efficiency, higher levels of severity or barriers, and lower trust in both medical staff and vaccine developers (P<.05). The females and participants with higher education levels, higher levels of barriers, lower levels of susceptibility, and lower trust in vaccine developers preferred to have attitudinal changes from acceptance to hesitancy, while people with higher education levels, lower self-report health conditions, experiencing chronic disease, history of allergies, and lower trust in medical staff and developers were all positively associated with constant COVID-19 booster hesitancy. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine booster hesitancy is not high in mainland China. However, there is a slight increment in hesitancy on regular booster vaccination. Conducting targeted information guidance for people with higher education levels and chronic diseases, as well as improving accessibility to booster vaccination and increasing trust in medical staff and vaccine producers may be highly effective in reducing vaccine hesitancy.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Hypersensitivity , Female , Male , Humans , Adult , Adolescent , COVID-19 Vaccines , COVID-19/epidemiology , COVID-19/prevention & control , VaccinationABSTRACT
Ti-doped α-Fe2O3 nanorods were prepared by a facile hydrothermal method, followed by a NiFe-LDH catalyst that was electrodeposited on the doped α-Fe2O3 nanorods to structure an integrating photoanode Ti:Fe2O3/NiFe-LDH for improving solar PEC water-splitting efficiency. The structure and properties of electrode materials were characterized and the PEC properties of photoanodes were measured. The results show that the photocurrent density of the photoanode enhances 11.25 times at 1.23 V (vs RHE) and the IPCE value enhances 4.10 times at 420 nm compared with pristine α-Fe2O3. The enhancement is attributed to the separating of photogenerated electron-hole, the increase of carrier density, and the acceleration of the carrier transfer rate due to the dual action of doping and catalysis.
ABSTRACT
Development of highly thermally stable broadband near-infrared (NIR) luminescence materials is crucial for advancing the prolonged stable application of smart NIR light sources. In this study, a zero-thermal-quenching and reversible temperature-dependent broadband NIR-emitting Cs2NaAl3F12:Cr3+ phosphor is demonstrated, benefiting from its stable polyhedron-cluster-building rigid structure. The excellent thermal stability of Cs2NaAl3F12:Cr3+ is rooted in its stable [Al6Na4F45] cluster building unit, which provides a rigid structure with a weak electron-phonon coupling effect and a wide band gap with a huge thermal activated barrier. Such characteristics are well revealed by multiple studies on crystal structure, electronic structure, Huang-Rhys factor S, configuration coordinate model, and Debye temperature. The incorporation of Li or K instead of Na weakens the luminescence thermal stability, directly proving the importance of the stable [Al6Na4F45] cluster for stable Cr3+ substitution and rigid structure construction. Furthermore, Cs2NaAl3F12:Cr3+ presents much superior thermal stability compared to traditional rigid garnet-type fluorides Na3X2Li3F12:Cr3+ (X = Al, Ga, In). A high-power NIR LED is presented, utilizing the high quantum efficiency (â¼71%) and extremely thermally stable broadband NIR emission around 750 nm of Cs2NaAl3F12:Cr3+. It realizes clear vein and cartilage imaging in the human hand, demonstrating its potential in medical diagnosis applications. This result provides important insights for designing new-type rigid crystal structures using stable polyhedron clusters as basic units, advancing the development of highly thermally stable NIR-emitting phosphors.
ABSTRACT
Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting has been recognized as the most promising approach for directly converting solar energy into chemical energy, and substantial efforts have been made to develop a highly efficient and low-cost photoanode for enhancement of PEC water splitting efficiency due to sluggish water oxidation reaction kinetics. A ternary NiFePB-modified ZnO/BiVO4 heterojunction photoanode was simply assembled by low-temperature hydrothermal, metal-organic decomposition and electrodeposition methods to improve the water splitting efficiency; its photocurrent density for water oxidation reached 1.66 mA cm-2 at 1.23 V (vs. RHE); in comparison, that of ZnO is only 0.4 mA cm-2. The onset potential manifests a cathodic shift of â¼283 mV compared to ZnO. The IPCE and the ABPE respectively are 3.1 and 6.4 times those of ZnO, respectively. This improvement is ascribed to the efficient separation of photogenerated electrons and holes by the formation of a heterojunction between ZnO and BiVO4 and the enhancement in the oxygen evolution reaction kinetics by the decoration of the co-catalyst NiFePB as a hole acceptor.
ABSTRACT
Dental-derived stem cells have excellent proliferation ability and multi-directional differentiation potential, making them an important research target in tissue engineering. An increasing number of dental-derived stem cells have been discovered recently, including dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs), stem cells from exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHEDs), stem cells from apical papilla (SCAPs), dental follicle precursor cells (DFPCs), and periodontal ligament stem cells (PDLSCs). These stem cells have significant application prospects in tissue regeneration because they are found in an abundance of sources, and they have good biocompatibility and are highly effective. The biological functions of dental-derived stem cells are regulated in many ways. Epigenetic regulation means changing the expression level and function of a gene without changing its sequence. Epigenetic regulation is involved in many biological processes, such as embryonic development, bone homeostasis, and the fate of stem cells. Existing studies have shown that dental-derived stem cells are also regulated by epigenetic modifications. Pulp and periodontal regeneration refers to the practice of replacing damaged pulp and periodontal tissue and restoring the tissue structure and function under normal physiological conditions. This treatment has better therapeutic effects than traditional treatments. This article reviews the recent research on the mechanism of epigenetic regulation of dental-derived stem cells, and the core issues surrounding the practical application and future use of pulp and periodontal regeneration.
Subject(s)
Mesenchymal Stem Cells , Humans , Epigenesis, Genetic , Stem Cells/physiology , Periodontal Ligament , Periodontium/physiologyABSTRACT
The Eastern Asia (EA) - North America (NA) disjunction is a well-known biogeographic pattern of the Tertiary relict flora; however, few studies have investigated the evolutionary history of this disjunction using a phylogenomic approach. Here, we used 2369 single copy nuclear genes and nearly full plastomes to reconstruct the evolutionary history of the small Tertiary relict genus Thuja, which consists of five disjunctly distributed species. The nuclear species tree strongly supported an EA clade Thuja standishii-Thuja sutchuenensis and a "disjunct clade", where western NA species T. plicata is sister to an EA-eastern NA disjunct Thuja occidentalis-Thuja koraiensis group. Our results suggested that the observed topological discordance among the gene trees as well as the cytonuclear discordance is mainly due to incomplete lineage sorting, probably facilitated by the fast diversification of Thuja around the Early Miocene and the large effective population sizes of ancestral lineages. Furthermore, approximately 20% of the T. sutchuenensis nuclear genome is derived from an unknown ancestral lineage of Thuja, which might explain the close resemblance of its cone morphology to that of an ancient fossil species. Overall, our study demonstrates that single genes may not resolve interspecific relationships for disjunct taxa, and that more reliable results will come from hundreds or thousands of loci, revealing a more complex evolutionary history. This will steadily improve our understanding of their origin and evolution.
Subject(s)
Cupressaceae , Thuja , Asia , Fossils , Phylogeny , Thuja/geneticsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND AIM: Botulinum toxin type A is considered to be an effective antispasmodic in recent years. We assess the effectiveness of botulinum toxin type A for the treatment of poststroke spasticity in the upper extremity using a meta-analysis. METHODS: We searched several databases including PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane database for relevant studies, up until October 2017. All randomized controlled trials of botulinum toxin type A treat poststroke upper limb spasticity published were included. The primary outcome measure was modified ashworth score at the elbow, finger and wrist, pain score, and barthel index. RESULTS: Ten randomized controlled trials were identified and reported sufficient data for inclusion in the pooled analysis (nâ¯=â¯950). The results of modified ashworth score at different joints, pain score, barthel index showed no difference was found in the effectiveness of botulinum toxin type A compared with placebo in the treatment of the upper limb spasticity after stroke. But modified ashworth score at the elbow was improver in Dysport subgroups (standardized mean difference [SMD]â¯=â¯-.39, 95%CIâ¯=â¯-.67 to -.10, Pâ¯=â¯.008) compared with Botox subgroups (SMDâ¯=â¯.08, 95%CIâ¯=â¯-.68 to .83, Pâ¯=â¯.84). CONCLUSIONS: The meta-analysis of these studies showed that the overall effectiveness of botulinum toxin type A does not seem to differ from placebo for poststroke Patients. But the meta-analysis yielded a favorable effect of Dysport compared with placebo based on 4 trials.
Subject(s)
Acetylcholine Release Inhibitors/therapeutic use , Botulinum Toxins, Type A/therapeutic use , Muscle Spasticity/drug therapy , Muscle, Skeletal/innervation , Parasympatholytics/therapeutic use , Stroke/complications , Acetylcholine Release Inhibitors/adverse effects , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Botulinum Toxins, Type A/adverse effects , Disability Evaluation , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Muscle Spasticity/diagnosis , Muscle Spasticity/etiology , Muscle Spasticity/physiopathology , Parasympatholytics/adverse effects , Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic , Recovery of Function , Stroke/diagnosis , Stroke/physiopathology , Treatment Outcome , Upper Extremity , Young AdultABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The outcome of ischemic stroke depends on multiple factors and their function of each other. Studies have shown that Sirtuin1 (SIRT1) plays a chief role in the key procedure during ischemia/hypoxia by protecting against cellular stress and controlling the metabolic pathways. AIMS: To explore the alterations in serum SIRT1 concentrations in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients and the relationship between SIRT1 and poststroke dementia, anxiety, and depression. METHODS: One hundred and twenty four consecutive patients with clinically diagnosed AIS were recruited to participate in the study. Serum SIRT1 levels were measured using a commercially available ELISA equipment for SIRT1 (Cusabio, Wuhan, China). In 1 year after admission, the severity of stroke was assessed with the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score, and the functional outcome was measured by a modified Rankin scale, the Hamilton Anxiety Scale scores were evaluated to define patients with or without anxiety, and the Hamilton Depression Scale scores for depression. RESULTS: We found the levels of serum SIRT1 was significantly higher (P = .036) in AIS patients (.62 ± .77 ng/mL) compared with healthy control subjects (.45 ± .69 ng/mL), but not significantly higher SIRT1 concentration (.58 ± .69 versus .64 ± .81 ng/mL, P = .298) than patients in the unfavorable functional outcome group. CONCLUSIONS: There is no potential diagnostic and prognostic role of SIRT1 in AIS-related dementia, anxiety, and depression. The role of SIRT1 in AIS among human race needs to be further investigated.
Subject(s)
Anxiety/blood , Brain Ischemia/blood , Dementia/blood , Depression/blood , Sirtuin 1/blood , Stroke/blood , Aged , Anxiety/etiology , Biomarkers/blood , Brain Ischemia/complications , Brain Ischemia/psychology , Dementia/etiology , Depression/etiology , Female , Humans , Male , Prognosis , Risk Factors , Stroke/complications , Stroke/psychologyABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Stroke is one of the most common causes of disability and death. Higher alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels have been associated with poor functional outcomes and mortality in previous studies. We investigated alterations in serum ALP concentrations and functional outcomes in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS). METHODS: Patients with first-ever AIS were recruited to participate in the study. Serum ALP levels were measured using a Cobas Integra 400 Plus automatic biochemical analyzer, and severity of stroke was evaluated using the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score on admission. Functional outcome was measured using the modified Rankin scale 1 year after admission. RESULTS: Serum ALP concentration was increased in patients with AIS (81.75 ± 20.49 versus 69.93 ± 16.12 U/L, Pâ¯=â¯.000) and the optimal ALP cutoff point for diagnosing patients with AIS was 81.50 U/L, with a sensitivity of 49.5% and specificity of 78.9%. However, there was no significant correlation between ALP and NIHSS scores (râ¯=â¯.170, Pâ¯=â¯.085) and ALP was not significantly different between favorable and unfavorable functional outcomes (81.76 ± .60 versus 81.70 ± 20.54 U/L, Pâ¯=â¯.802). CONCLUSIONS: Serum ALP concentration, which was increased in patients with AIS, might represent a low-potency biomarker for the diagnosis of AIS. However, this was not significantly correlated with NIHSS scores or the functional outcome after 1 year.
Subject(s)
Alkaline Phosphatase/blood , Brain Ischemia/blood , Brain Ischemia/enzymology , Stroke/blood , Stroke/enzymology , Biomarkers/blood , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Prospective Studies , Severity of Illness IndexABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The blood-brain barrier is impaired in patients with stroke. The release of protein markers such as Sirtuin1 (SIRTl) into circulation may be useful to assess the prognosis of patients with cerebrovascular disease. In this study, we investigated the predictive value of SIRT1 levels in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients. METHODS: In all, 101 AIS patients and 38 healthy controls were enrolled, and blood samples were collected within 72 hours of stroke onset. SIRT1 was analyzed using a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. On admission, neurological status was assessed by the standardized National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS). Functional outcomes were measured 1 year after admission using the modified Rankin scale. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, SIRT1 was significantly increased in the AIS group (0.63â±â0.75 vs 0.48â±â0.80âng/mL; Pâ≤â0.05). However, there was no significant correlation between SIRT1 and NIHSS score at admission (râ=â-0.01, Pâ=â.920). In addition, with an unadjusted odds ratio of 0.862 (95% confidence interval 0.495-1.502), SIRT1 was not significantly correlated with functional outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Serum concentrations of SIRT1 have no significant predictive value for favorable functional outcome after acute stroke in our study.
Subject(s)
Brain Ischemia/blood , Sirtuin 1/blood , Stroke/blood , Aged , Biomarkers/blood , Female , Humans , Male , Prognosis , Severity of Illness IndexABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: KRAS mutations are the key indicator for EGFR monoclonal antibody-targeted therapy and acquired drug resistance, and their accurate detection is critical to the clinical decision-making of colorectal cancer. However, no proper quality control material is available for the current detection methods, particularly next-generation sequencing (NGS). The ideal quality control material for NGS needs to provide both the tumor mutation gene and the matched background genomic DNA, which is uncataloged in public databases, to accurately distinguish germline polymorphisms and somatic mutations. METHODS: We developed a novel KRAS G12V mutant cell line using the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) technique to make up for the deficiencies in existing quality control material and further validated the feasibility of the cell line as quality control material by amplification refractory mutation system (ARMS), Sanger sequencing, digital PCR (dPCR), and NGS. RESULTS: We verified that the edited cell line specifically had the G12V mutation, and the validation results presented a high consistency among the four methods of detection. The three cell lines screened contained the G12V mutation and the mutation allele fractions of G12V-1, G12V-2, and G12V-3 were 52.01%, 82.06%, and 17.29%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The novel KRAS G12V cell line generated using the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing system is suitable as a quality control material for all current detection methods and provides a new direction in the development of quality control material.
Subject(s)
CRISPR-Cas Systems/genetics , Glycine/genetics , Mutation/genetics , Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)/genetics , Valine/genetics , Cell Line , DNA Mutational Analysis , HEK293 Cells , Humans , TransfectionABSTRACT
Parkinson's disease (PD), a progressive and age-related neurodegenerative condition, is a common neurodegenerative disorder. However, no validated biomarkers for PD have been identified to date. Accumulating evidence supports the role of proNGF-p75NTR-sortilin signaling in the neurodegeneration and pathogenesis of PD. The aim of our study was to investigate alterations in serum proNGF concentrations in PD patients and related anxiety. Seventy-seven consecutive PD patients and 39 healthy controls were enrolled, and clinical data were collected. Modified Hoehn-Yahr Staging Scale, Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), and Hamilton Anxiety (HAMA) Scale scores were assessed upon admission. Serum proNGF concentration was compared between that of PD patients and healthy controls. Pearson correlation coefficients were determined to explore the relationship between proNGF concentration and UPDRS, Hoehn-Yahr, and HAMA scores. Received operating characteristic (ROC) curves and proNGF optimal cutoff point were used to distinguish PD and related anxiety. The median concentration of proNGF was significantly lower (p = 0.000) in PD patients (94.91 ng/L, range 85.92-118.06 ng/L) compared with that of healthy controls (106.67 ng/L, range 102.39-122.06 ng/L). The optimal proNGF cutoff point for distinguishing PD patients was 102.29 ng/L, and the sensitivity and specificity values were 87.0 and 100%, respectively. proNGF concentration positively correlated with UPDRS (r = 0.281, p = 0.013), Hoehn-Yahr (r = 0.260, p = 0.023), and HAMA (r = 0.276, p = 0.015) scores. Our results indicate that serum proNGF concentration may represent a biomarker for PD and its role in the pathogenesis of PD thus warrants further investigation.
Subject(s)
Nerve Growth Factor/blood , Parkinson Disease/blood , Protein Precursors/blood , Anxiety/blood , Anxiety/complications , Biomarkers/blood , Female , Humans , Male , Parkinson Disease/complications , Parkinson Disease/diagnosis , Psychiatric Status Rating Scales , ROC Curve , Severity of Illness IndexABSTRACT
Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is defined as an irresistible urge to move the legs, which is usually accompanied by paresthesias or dysesthesias at least twice weekly, and affects 2%-4% of adults in Europe and North America. This systematic review assesses the current complementary and alternative options for RLS and the potential benefits of those treatments on sleep quality, mood disorder, and quality of life. A systematic search of the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Web of Science databases was conducted. Eighteen studies met the inclusion criterion, which included the use of the international RLS study group criteria. Complementary and alternative therapies have been found to be effective in both primary and secondary RLS. The severity of primary RLS symptoms can be significantly ameliorated by exercise training, transcutaneous spinal direct current stimulation, pneumatic compression devices, light therapy, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation, and acupuncture. Pneumatic compression devices and yoga also improve RLS-related disorders. Exercise training is highly efficacious in the reduction of symptom severity in uremic RLS and related effects such as poor quality of life. Endovenous laser ablation may be a good choice for patients with concurrent RLS and superficial venous insufficiency.
Subject(s)
Complementary Therapies/methods , Exercise , Restless Legs Syndrome/therapy , Depression/psychology , Humans , Quality of Life , Sleep/physiologyABSTRACT
Colorectal cancer (CRC) has been the fourth leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Owing to clonal evolution and selection, CRC treatment needs multimodal therapeutic approaches and due monitoring of tumor progression and therapeutic efficacy. Liquid biopsy, involving the use of circulating tumor cells (CTCs), circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), and exosomes, may offer a promising noninvasive alternative for diagnosis and for real-time monitoring of tumor evolution and therapeutic response compared to traditional tissue biopsy. Monitoring of the disease processes can enable clinicians to readily adopt a strategy based on optimal therapeutic decision-making. This article provides an overview of the significant advances and the current clinical and biological significance of CTCs, ctDNA, and exosomes in CRC, as well as a comparison of the main merits and demerits of these three components. The hurdles that need to be resolved and potential directions to be followed with respect to liquid biopsies for detection and therapy of CRC are also discussed.