De novo transcriptome assembly database for 100 tissues from each of seven species of domestic herbivore.

Domesticated herbivores are an important agricultural resource that play a critical role in global food security, particularly as they can adapt to varied environments, including marginal lands. An understanding of the molecular basis of their biology would contribute to better management and sustainable production. Thus, we conducted transcriptome sequencing of 100 to 105 tissues from two females of each of seven species of herbivore (cattle, sheep, goats, sika deer, horses, donkeys, and rabbits) including two breeds of sheep. The quality of raw and trimmed reads was assessed in terms of base quality, GC content, duplication sequence rate, overrepresented k-mers, and quality score distribution with FastQC. The high-quality filtered RNA-seq raw reads were deposited in a public database which provides approximately 54 billion high-quality paired-end sequencing reads in total, with an average mapping rate of ~93.92%. Transcriptome databases represent valuable resources that can be used to study patterns of gene expression, and pathways that are related to key biological processes, including important economic traits in herbivores.

General anesthesia versus local anesthesia for deep brain stimulation targeting of STN in Parkinson's disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) is a viable therapeutic for advanced Parkinson's disease. However, the efficacy and safety of STN-DBS under local anesthesia (LA) versus general anesthesia (GA) remain controversial. This meta-analysis aims to compare them using an expanded sample size. METHODS: The databases of Embase, Cochrane Library and Medline were systematically searched for eligible cohort studies published between 1967 and 2023. Clinical efficacy was assessed using either Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) section III scores or levodopa equivalent dosage requirements. Subgroup analyses were performed to assess complications (adverse effects related to stimulation, general neurological and surgical complications, and hardware-related complications). RESULTS: Fifteen studies, comprising of 13 retrospective cohort studies and 2 prospective cohort studies, involving a total of 943 patients were included in this meta-analysis. The results indicate that there were no significant differences between the 2 groups with regards to improvement in UPDRS III score or postoperative levodopa equivalent dosage requirement. However, subgroup analysis revealed that patients who underwent GA with intraoperative imaging had higher UPDRS III score improvement compared to those who received LA with microelectrode recording (MER) (P = .03). No significant difference was found in the improvement of UPDRS III scores between the GA group and LA group with MER. Additionally, there were no notable differences in the incidence rates of complications between these 2 groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our meta-analysis indicates that STN-DBS performed under GA or LA have similar clinical outcomes and complications. Therefore, GA may be a suitable option for patients with severe symptoms who cannot tolerate the procedure under LA. Additionally, the GA group with intraoperative imaging showed better clinical outcomes than the LA group with MER. A more compelling conclusion would require larger prospective cohort studies with a substantial patient population and extended long follow-up to validate.

Motor cortex stimulation for the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia after brainstem infarction: A case report. / 运动皮层电刺激治疗脑干梗死后三叉神经痛1例.

Secondary trigeminal neuralgia after brainstem infarction is rare and rarely reported. A patient with secondary trigeminal neuralgia after brainstem infarction was admitted to the Department of Neurosurgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University. The patient was a 44 years old male who underwent motor cortex stimulation treatment after admission. The effect was satisfactory in the first week after surgery, but the effect was not satisfactory after one week. This disease is relatively rare and the choice of clinical treatment still requires long-term observation.

Long-term Efficacy of Bilateral Globus Pallidus Stimulation in the Treatment of Meige Syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the long-term efficacy and prognosis of bilateral globus pallidus internus (GPi) deep brain stimulation (DBS) in patients with benign essential blepharospasm (BEB) and complete Meige syndrome, and to search for the best therapeutic subregion within the GPi. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were collected for 36 patients with Meige syndrome who underwent bilateral GPi-DBS surgery at our hospital between March 2014 and February 2022. Using the Burk-Fahn-Marsden Dystonia Rating Scale (BFMDRS)-Movement (BFMDRS-M) and BFMDRS-Disability (BFMDRS-D), the severity of the symptoms of patients with complete Meige syndrome was evaluated before surgery and at specific time points after surgery. Patients with BEB were clinically evaluated for the severity of blepharospasm using BFMDRS-M, the Blepharospasm Disability Index (BDI), and Jankovic Rating Scale (JRS). Three-dimensional reconstruction of the GPi-electrode was performed in some patients using the lead-DBS software, and the correlation between GPi subregion volume of tissue activated (VTA) and symptom improvement was analyzed in patients six months after surgery. The follow-up duration ranged from six to 99 months. RESULTS: Compared with preoperative scores, the results of all patients at six months after surgery and final follow-up showed a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in the mean BFMDRS-M score. Among them, the average BFMDRS-M improvement rates in patients with BEB at six months after surgery and final follow-up were 60.3% and 69.7%, respectively, whereas those in patients with complete Meige syndrome were 54.5% and 58.3%, respectively. The average JRS and BDI scores of patients with BEB also decreased significantly (p < 0.05) at six months after surgery and at the final follow-up (JRS improvement: 38.6% and 49.1%, respectively; BDI improvement: 42.6% and 57.4%, respectively). We were unable to identify significantly correlated prognostic factors. There was a significant correlation between GPi occipital VTA and symptom improvement in patients at six months after surgery (r = 0.34, p = 0.025). CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that bilateral GPi-DBS is an effective treatment for Meige syndrome, with no serious postoperative complications. The VTA in the GPi subregion may be related to the movement score improvement. In addition, further research is needed to predict patients with poor surgical outcomes.

Preoperative structural-functional coupling at the default mode network predicts surgical outcomes of temporal lobe epilepsy.

OBJECTIVE: Structural-functional coupling (SFC) has shown great promise in predicting postsurgical seizure recurrence in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). In this study, we aimed to clarify the global alterations in SFC in TLE patients and predict their surgical outcomes using SFC features. METHODS: This study analyzed presurgical diffusion and functional magnetic resonance imaging data from 71 TLE patients and 48 healthy controls (HCs). TLE patients were categorized into seizure-free (SF) and non-seizure-free (nSF) groups based on postsurgical recurrence. Individual functional connectivity (FC), structural connectivity (SC), and SFC were quantified at the regional and modular levels. The data were compared between the TLE and HC groups as well as among the TLE, SF, and nSF groups. The features of SFC, SC, and FC were categorized into three datasets: the modular SFC dataset, regional SFC dataset, and SC/FC dataset. Each dataset was independently integrated into a cross-validated machine learning model to classify surgical outcomes. RESULTS: Compared with HCs, the visual and subcortical modules exhibited decoupling in TLE patients (p < .05). Multiple default mode network (DMN)-related SFCs were significantly higher in the nSF group than in the SF group (p < .05). Models trained using the modular SFC dataset demonstrated the highest predictive performance. The final prediction model achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of .893 with an overall accuracy of .887. SIGNIFICANCE: Presurgical hyper-SFC in the DMN was strongly associated with postoperative seizure recurrence. Furthermore, our results introduce a novel SFC-based machine learning model to precisely classify the surgical outcomes of TLE.

Efficacy of Sildenafil on healthy humans in high­altitude hypoxia at rest and during exercise: A meta­analysis.

The current meta-analysis aimed to fully evaluate the efficacy of Sildenafil in healthy humans at different altitudes, focusing on echocardiographic and hemodynamic parameters. Relevant studies were retrieved from the Cochrane, Embase and PubMed databases. Odds ratios (OR) were determined for dichotomous data and weighted mean differences with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for continuous data. A total of 16 RCTs were included in the current meta-analysis. Short-term treatment with Sildenafil significantly elevated resting heart rate (P<0.01) at altitudes <4,000 meters. No significant differences in heart rate were observed between the Sildenafil and placebo groups at rest and during exercise at an altitude of >4,000 meters (P>0.05). Sildenafil improved resting cardiac output at an altitude of >5,000 meters (P<0.01) and exercising arterial oxygen saturation at <4,000 meters (P<0.01). Sildenafil reduced resting pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) at altitudes >4,000 meters (P<0.01) and exercising PASP at altitudes >5,000 meters (P<0.01). Therefore, Sildenafil efficacy in healthy humans with high-altitude hypoxia is related to altitude and rest or exercise.

[18F]FDG PET metabolic patterns in mesial temporal lobe epilepsy with different pathological types.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate [18F]FDG PET patterns of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) patients with distinct pathologic types and provide possible guidance for predicting long-term prognoses of patients undergoing epilepsy surgery. METHODS: This was a retrospective review of MTLE patients who underwent anterior temporal lobectomy between 2016 and 2021. Patients were classified as having chronic inflammation and gliosis (gliosis, n = 44), hippocampal sclerosis (HS, n = 43), or focal cortical dysplasia plus HS (FCD-HS, n = 13) based on the postoperative pathological diagnosis. Metabolic patterns and the severity of metabolic abnormalities were investigated among MTLE patients and healthy controls (HCs). The standardized uptake value (SUV), SUV ratio (SUVr), and asymmetry index (AI) of regions of interest were applied to evaluate the severity of metabolic abnormalities. Imaging processing was performed with statistical parametric mapping (SPM12). RESULTS: With a mean follow-up of 2.8 years, the seizure freedom (Engel class IA) rates of gliosis, HS, and FCD-HS were 54.55%, 62.79%, and 69.23%, respectively. The patients in the gliosis group presented a metabolic pattern with a larger involvement of extratemporal areas, including the ipsilateral insula. SUV, SUVr, and AI in ROIs were decreased for patients in all three MTLE groups compared with those of HCs, but the differences among all three MTLE groups were not significant. CONCLUSIONS: MTLE patients with isolated gliosis had the worst prognosis and hypometabolism in the insula, but the degree of metabolic decrease did not differ from the other two groups. Hypometabolic regions should be prioritized for [18F]FDG PET presurgical evaluation rather than [18F]FDG uptake values. CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: This study proposes guidance for optimizing the operation scheme in patients with refractory MTLE and emphasizes the potential of molecular neuroimaging with PET using selected tracers to predict the postsurgical histology of patients with refractory MTLE epilepsy. KEY POINTS: • MTLE patients with gliosis had poor surgical outcomes and showed a distinct pattern of decreased metabolism in the ipsilateral insula. • In the preoperative assessment of MTLE, it is recommended to prioritize the evaluation of glucose hypometabolism areas over [18F]FDG uptake values. • The degree of glucose hypometabolism in the epileptogenic focus was not associated with the surgical outcomes of MTLE.

SoyMD: a platform combining multi-omics data with various tools for soybean research and breeding.

Advanced multi-omics technologies offer much information that can uncover the regulatory mechanisms from genotype to phenotype. In soybean, numerous multi-omics databases have been published. Although they cover multiple omics, there are still limitations when it comes to the types and scales of omics datasets and analysis methods utilized. This study aims to address these limitations by collecting and integrating a comprehensive set of multi-omics datasets. This includes 38 genomes, transcriptomes from 435 tissue samples, 125 phenotypes from 6686 accessions, epigenome data involving histone modification, transcription factor binding, chromosomal accessibility and chromosomal interaction, as well as genetic variation data from 24 501 soybean accessions. Then, common analysis pipelines and statistical methods were applied to mine information from these multi-omics datasets, resulting in the successful establishment of a user-friendly multi-omics database called SoyMD (https://yanglab.hzau.edu.cn/SoyMD/#/). SoyMD provides researchers with efficient query options and analysis tools, allowing them to swiftly access relevant omics information and conduct comprehensive multi-omics data analyses. Another notable feature of SoyMD is its capability to facilitate the analysis of candidate genes, as demonstrated in the case study on seed oil content. This highlights the immense potential of SoyMD in soybean genetic breeding and functional genomics research.

Transcriptomics reveals a core transcriptional network of K-type cytoplasmic male sterility microspore abortion in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).

BACKGROUND: Cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) plays a crucial role in hybrid production. K-type CMS, a cytoplasmic male sterile line of wheat with the cytoplasms of Aegilops kotschyi, is widely used due to its excellent characteristics of agronomic performance, easy maintenance and easy restoration. However, the mechanism of its pollen abortion is not yet clear. RESULTS: In this study, wheat K-type CMS MS(KOTS)-90-110 (MS line) and it's fertile near-isogenic line MR (KOTS)-90-110 (MR line) were investigated. Cytological analysis indicated that the anthers of MS line microspore nucleus failed to divide normally into two sperm nucleus and lacked starch in mature pollen grains, and the key abortive period was the uninucleate stage to dinuclear stage. Then, we compared the transcriptome of MS line and MR line anthers at these two stages. 11,360 and 5182 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between the MS and MR lines in the early uninucleate and binucleate stages, respectively. Based on GO enrichment and KEGG pathways analysis, it was evident that significant transcriptomic differences were "plant hormone signal transduction", "MAPK signaling pathway" and "spliceosome". We identified 17 and 10 DEGs associated with the IAA and ABA signal transduction pathways, respectively. DEGs related to IAA signal transduction pathway were downregulated in the early uninucleate stage of MS line. The expression level of DEGs related to ABA pathway was significantly upregulated in MS line at the binucleate stage compared to MR line. The determination of plant hormone content and qRT-PCR further confirmed that hormone imbalance in MS lines. Meanwhile, 1 and 2 DEGs involved in ABA and Ethylene metabolism were also identified in the MAPK cascade pathway, respectively; the significant up regulation of spliceosome related genes in MS line may be another important factor leading to pollen abortion. CONCLUSIONS: We proposed a transcriptome-mediated pollen abortion network for K-type CMS in wheat. The main idea is hormone imbalance may be the primary factor, MAPK cascade pathway and alternative splicing (AS) may also play important regulatory roles in this process. These findings provided intriguing insights for the molecular mechanism of microspore abortion in K-type CMS, and also give useful clues to identify the crucial genes of CMS in wheat.

Prefrontal activation in response to a plantar contact task under open and closed eye conditions in patients with cerebral infarction.

Objective: This study investigates the effect of a bilateral (paralyzed side, healthy side) plantar contact task on dorsolateral prefrontal activation in patients recovering from cerebral infarction under open and closed eye conditions. Methods: We selected 10 patients with cerebral infarction, admitted to the neurorehabilitation center of Beijing Rehabilitation Hospital, affiliated with Capital Medical University, from January 2019 to July 2020, who met our established criteria. Under open-eye and closed-eye conditions, the paralyzed and healthy sides performed the plantar contact tasks separately. The dorsolateral prefrontal region was monitored simultaneously with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), and activation was analyzed according to the curve-type changes of oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin changes in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex with 560 near-infrared monitoring channels. Results: After stratifying the data based on the eyes-open and eyes-closed conditions, some degree of heterogeneity was observed between the layers. Under the eyes-closed condition, the Pearson χ2 was 0.142, with a p value of 0.706, indicating no significant impact of the eyes-closed condition on the activation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during the plantar task, whether performed on the paralyzed or the healthy side.In contrast, the Pearson χ2 value was 15.15 for the eyes-open condition, with a p value of 0.002. This suggests that carrying out the plantar task, either on the paralyzed or the healthy side, with eyes open significantly influenced the activation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Furthermore, activation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex was 1.55 times higher when the task was executed with the paralyzed side compared to the healthy side. This implies that the paralyzed side was more likely to activate the dorsolateral prefrontal lobe when performing the plantar contact task under eyes-open conditions. Conclusion: Observations via fNIRS revealed that the plantar contact task elicited dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activation. Moreover, the activation effect was intensified when performed on the paralyzed side under eyes-open conditions. Therapeutic methods that leverage these findings-namely cognitive-motor therapies that promote the recovery of motor functions by activating cognitive control brain regions via perception (information construction)-may hold promise.

Differences in whole-brain metabolism are associated with the expression of genes related to neurovascular unit integrity and synaptic plasticity in temporal lobe epilepsy.

PURPOSE: Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is a common, polygenic epilepsy syndrome that involves glucose hypometabolism in the epileptogenic zone. However, the transcriptional and cellular signatures underlying the metabolism in TLE remain unclear. METHODS: In this retrospective study, 2-[18F]-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose ([18F]FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) scans of TLE patients (n = 104) who underwent anterior temporal lobectomy were consecutively collected between 2016 and 2021. The transcriptional profiles of TLE risk genes across the brain were identified by the gene expression analyses from six TLE patients and twelve postmortem donors (six from the Allen Human Brain Atlas). Integrating the neuroimaging and transcriptomic data, we examined the relationship between the expression of TLE-associated genes and metabolic alterations in TLE. Furthermore, we performed functional enrichment analyses of the genes with higher weight in partial least squares regression using Metascape. RESULTS: A total of 104 patients with TLE (mean age 29 ± 9 years, 50% male) and 30 healthy controls (HCs) (mean age 31 ± 6 years, 53% male) were enrolled. Compared to that of HCs, patients with TLE showed hypometabolism in the temporal lobes and adjacent structures but hypermetabolism in the thalamus and basal ganglia. The cortical map of inter-group differences in cerebral metabolism was spatially correlated with the expression of a weighted combination of genes enriched in ontology terms and pathways related to neurovascular unit (NVU) integrity and synaptic plasticity. DISCUSSION: Our findings, combined with the analysis of neuroimaging and transcriptional data, suggest that genes related to NVU integrity and synaptic plasticity may drive alterations to brain metabolism that mediate the genetic risk of TLE.

The photocatalytic reduction of U(VI) by Ag-doped SnS2 materials under visible light.

Efficient degradation of uranium(VI) (U(VI)) in wastewater is an urgent problem because of the chemical toxicity and radiotoxicity. In this study, the Agx-SnS2 photocatalysts were compounded by a simple hydrothermal method, effectively removing U(VI) under visible light in water. Compared with SnS2, the results indicated that Agx-SnS2 would decrease the crystallinity without destroying the crystal structure. Moreover, it has excellent photocatalytic performance on the degradation rate of U(VI). Ag0.5-SnS2 exhibited a prominent photocatalytic reduction efficiency of UO22+ of about 86.4% under optical light for 75 min. This was attributed to Ag-doped catalysts, which can narrow the band gap and enhance absorption in visible light. Meanwhile, the doping of Ag promoted the separation of photoinduced carriers, so that more photogenerated charges participated in the photocatalytic reaction. The stability and reusability were verified by the cycle test and the potential photocatalytic mechanism was analyzed based on the experiment.

Metabolic profiles and correlation with surgical outcomes in mesial versus neocortical temporal lobe epilepsy.

AIMS: Differentiating mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) and neocortical temporal lobe epilepsy (NTLE) remains challenging. Our study characterized the metabolic profiles between MTLE and NTLE and their correlation with surgical prognosis using 18 F-FDG-PET. METHODS: A total of 137 patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and 40 age-matched healthy controls were recruited. Patients were divided into the MTLE group (N = 91) and the NTLE group (N = 46). 18 F-FDG-PET was used to measure the metabolism of regional cerebra, which was analyzed using statistical parametric mapping. The volume of abnormal metabolism in cerebral regions and their relationship with surgical prognosis were calculated for each surgical patient. RESULTS: The cerebral hypometabolism of MTLE was limited to the ipsilateral temporal and insular lobes (p < 0.001, uncorrected). The NTLE patients showed hypometabolism in the ipsilateral temporal, frontal, and parietal lobes (p < 0.001, uncorrected). The MTLE patients showed extensive hypermetabolism in cerebral regions (p < 0.001, uncorrected). Hypermetabolism in NTLE was limited to the contralateral temporal lobe and cerebellum, ipsilateral frontal lobe, occipital lobe, and bilateral thalamus (p < 0.001, uncorrected). Among patients who underwent resection of epileptic lesions, 51 (67.1%) patients in the MTLE group and 10 (43.5%) in the NTLE group achieved Engel class IA outcome (p = 0.041). The volumes of metabolic increase for the frontal lobe or thalamus in the MTLE group were larger in non-Engel class IA patients than Engel class IA patients (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The spatial metabolic profile discriminated NTLE from MTLE. Hypermetabolism of the thalamus and frontal lobe in MTLE may facilitate preoperative counseling and surgical planning.

BnIR: A multi-omics database with various tools for Brassica napus research and breeding.

In the post-genome-wide association study era, multi-omics techniques have shown great power and potential for candidate gene mining and functional genomics research. However, due to the lack of effective data integration and multi-omics analysis platforms, such techniques have not still been applied widely in rapeseed, an important oil crop worldwide. Here, we report a rapeseed multi-omics database (BnIR; http://yanglab.hzau.edu.cn/BnIR), which provides datasets of six omics including genomics, transcriptomics, variomics, epigenetics, phenomics, and metabolomics, as well as numerous "variation-gene expression-phenotype" associations by using multiple statistical methods. In addition, a series of multi-omics search and analysis tools are integrated to facilitate the browsing and application of these datasets. BnIR is the most comprehensive multi-omics database for rapeseed so far, and two case studies demonstrated its power to mine candidate genes associated with specific traits and analyze their potential regulatory mechanisms.