Extracts from Dendropanax morbifera leaves ameliorates cerebral ischemia-induced hippocampal damage by reducing oxidative damage in gerbil.

AIM: In this study, we investigated the effects of Dendropanax morbifera extract (DME) on neuroprotection against ischemic damage in gerbils. METHODS: DME (100 or 300 mg/kg) was orally administered to gerbils for three weeks, and 2 h after the last DME treatment, transient forebrain ischemia in the common carotid arteries was induced for 5 min. The forebrain ischemia-related cognitive impairments were assessed by spontaneous motor activity and passive avoidance test one and four days after ischemia, respectively. In addition, surviving and degenerating neurons were morphologically confirmed by neuronal nuclei immunohistochemical staining and Fluoro-Jade C staining, respectively, four days after ischemia. Changes of glial morphology were visualized by immunohistochemical staining for each marker such as glial fibrillary acidic protein and ionized calcium-binding protein. Oxidative stress was determined by measurements of dihydroethidium, O2· (formation of formazan) and malondialdehyde two days after ischemia. In addition, glutathione redox system such as reduced glutathione, oxidized glutathione levels, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione reductase activities were measured two days after ischemia. RESULTS: Spontaneous motor activity monitoring and passive avoidance tests showed that treatment with 300 mg/kg DME, but not 100 mg/kg, significantly alleviated ischemia-induced memory impairments. In addition, approximately 67 % of mature neurons survived and 29.3 % neurons were degenerated in hippocampal CA1 region four days after ischemia, and ischemia-induced morphological changes in astrocytes and microglia were decreased in the CA1 region after 300 mg/kg DME treatment. Furthermore, treatment with 300 mg/kg DME significantly ameliorated ischemia-induced oxidative stress, such as superoxide formation and lipid peroxidation, two days after ischemia. In addition, ischemia-induced reduction of the glutathione redox system in the hippocampus, assessed two days after the ischemia, was ameliorated by treatment with 300 mg/kg DME. These suggest that DME can potentially reduce ischemia-induced neuronal damage through its antioxidant properties.

Tat-heat shock protein 10 ameliorates age-related phenotypes by facilitating neuronal plasticity and reducing age-related genes in the hippocampus.

We investigated the effects of heat shock protein 10 (HSP10) protein on memory function, hippocampal neurogenesis, and other related genes/proteins in adult and aged mice. To translocate the HSP10 protein into the hippocampus, the Tat-HSP10 fusion protein was synthesized, and Tat-HSP10, not HSP10, was successfully delivered into the hippocampus based on immunohistochemistry and western blotting. Tat-HSP10 (0.5 or 2.0 mg/kg) or HSP10 (control protein, 2.0 mg/kg) was administered daily to 3- and 21-month-old mice for 3 months, and observed the senescence maker P16 was significantly increased in aged mice and the treatment with Tat-HSP10 significantly decreased P16 expression in the hippocampus of aged mice. In novel object recognition and Morris water maze tests, aged mice demonstrated decreases in exploratory preferences, exploration time, distance moved, number of object contacts, and escape latency compared to adult mice. Treatment with Tat-HSP10 significantly improved exploratory preferences, the number of object contacts, and the time spent swimming in the target quadrant in aged mice but not adults. Administration of Tat-HSP10 increased the number of proliferating cells and differentiated neuroblasts in the dentate gyrus of adult and aged mice compared to controls, as determined by immunohistochemical staining for Ki67 and doublecortin, respectively. Additionally, Tat-HSP10 treatment significantly mitigated the reduction in sirtuin 1 mRNA level, N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor 1, and postsynaptic density 95 protein levels in the hippocampus of aged mice. In contrast, Tat-HSP10 treatment significantly increased sirtuin 3 protein levels in both adult and aged mouse hippocampus. These suggest that Tat-HSP10 can potentially reduce hippocampus-related aging phenotypes.

Evaluation of Polycaprolactone Applicability for Manufacturing High-Performance Cellulose Nanocrystal Cement Composites.

This experimental study examined the aplication effect of polycaprolactone (PCL), an organic resin material with excellent elasticity and ductility, on improving the mechanical performance of cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) cement composites. PCL was compared according to its shape, and in the case of Granules, which is the basic shape, interfacial adhesion with cement was not achieved, so a dichloromethane (DCM) solution was used to dissolve and use the Granules form. As a method for bonding PCL to the CNC surface, the CNC surface was modified using 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES), and surface silylation was confirmed through Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis. In order to evaluate the dispersibility according to the application of PCL to the modified CNC, particle size analysis (PSA) and zeta potential analysis were performed according to the PCL mixing ratio. Through the PSA and zeta potential values, the highest dispersion stability was shown at 1 vol.%, the cohesive force of CNC was low, and the dispersion stability was high according to the application of PCL. According to the results of the dispersion stability evaluation, the degree of hydration of the dissolved PCL 1 vol.%, CNC-only specimens, and plain specimens were analyzed. CNC acted as a water channel inside the cement to accelerate hydration in the non-hydrated area, resulting in an increased degree of hydration. However, the incorporation of PCL showed a low degree of hydration, and the analysis of strength characteristics also showed a decrease of approximately 27% compared with that of plain specimens. This was because the bonding with SiO2 was not smooth owing to the solvent, thus affecting internal hydration. In order to investigate the effect of the PCL shape, the compressive and flexural strength characteristics were compared using PCL powder as an additional parameter. The compressive strength and flexural strength were improved by about 54% and 26%, respectively, in the PCL powder 15 wt% specimen compared to the general specimen. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis confirmed that the filler effect, which made the microporous structure denser, affects the mechanical performance improvement.

Selective Denervation for the Thumb Carpometacarpal Joint: Clinical Outcome and Comparison Based on Eaton Stage.

PURPOSE: Various operative treatment options for advanced thumb carpometacarpal (CMC) joint arthritis have been presented without a definite surgical guideline. Selective denervation is a less invasive method for thumb CMC arthritis. However, it is unclear whether the clinical outcome varies with the stage of thumb CMC arthritis. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of selective denervation on CMC arthritis for pain relief and functional outcome and to determine whether selective denervation depends on the stage of thumb CMC arthritis. METHODS: We evaluated 29 thumbs of 28 patients with thumb CMC arthritis treated with selective denervation. The disease stage was determined with the classification system described by Eaton. The denervation was performed in the articular branches of the palmar cutaneous branch of the median nerve, lateral antebrachial cutaneous nerve, and superficial branch of radial nerve. The clinical outcomes were evaluated using the visual analog scale (VAS) and Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (DASH) scores, along with evaluation of the improvement in both postoperative range of motion and strength recovery. RESULTS: The mean duration of follow-up was 24 months (range, 18-48 months). The average VAS and DASH scores decreased from 6.1 to 1.3 and from 54.3 to 24.1, respectively. The range of motion during palmar abduction and opposition of the metacarpophalangeal joint improved with an increase in mean value from 44.1 to 53.7 degrees, and the Kapandji score increased from 7.2 to 9.2, respectively. The grip and key pinch strengths increased from mean preoperative values of 14.3 and 3.1 kg to 27.1 and 6.2 kg, respectively, as measured at the 12-month follow-up. The rate of change in the VAS and DASH scores was significantly higher in stages I to III than in stage IV ( P = 0.01, P < 0.01, respectively). CONCLUSION: The selective denervation for thumb CMC arthritis was effective in pain relief and functional recovery with several advantages, including less invasive procedure, quick recovery time, and regaining of strength. The clinical outcomes were more effective in the early-stage group (Eaton stages I and II) compared with the advance-stage group (Eaton stages III and IV).

The clinical necessity of a distal forearm DEXA scan for predicting distal radius fracture in elderly females: a retrospective case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have demonstrated that the distal forearm dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scan might be a better method for screening bone mineral density (BMD) and the risk of a distal forearm fracture, compared with a central DEXA scan. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a distal forearm DEXA scan for predicting the occurrence of a distal radius fracture (DRF) in elderly females who were not initially diagnosed with osteoporosis after a central DEXA scan. METHODS: Among the female patients who visited our institutes and who were over 50 years old and underwent DEXA scans at 3 sites (lumbar spine, proximal femur, and distal forearm), 228 patients with DRF (group 1) and 228 propensity score-matched patients without fractures (group 2) were included in this study. The patients' general characteristics, BMD, and T-scores were compared. The odds ratios (OR) of each measurement and correlation ratio among BMD values of the different sites were evaluated. RESULTS: The distal forearm T-score of the elderly females with DRF (group 1) was significantly lower than that of the control group (group 2) (p < 0.001 for the one-third radius and ultradistal radius measurements). BMD measured during the distal forearm DEXA scan was a better predictor of DRF risk than BMD measured during the central DEXA (OR = 2.33; p = 0.031 for the one-third radius, and OR = 3.98; p < 0.001 for the ultradistal radius). The distal one-third radius BMD was correlated with hip BMD, rather than lumbar BMD (p < 0.05 in each group). CONCLUSION: Performing a distal forearm DEXA scan in addition to a central DEXA scan appears to be clinically significant for detecting the low BMD in the distal radius, which is associated with osteoporotic DRF in elderly females. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III; case-control study.

Postnatal Changes of Somatostatin Expression in Hippocampi of C57BL/6 Mice; Modulation of Neuroblast Differentiation in the Hippocampus.

(1) Background: Somatostatin (SST) exhibits expressional changes in the brain during development, but its role is not still clear in brain development. (2) Methods: We investigated postnatal SST expression and its effects on hippocampal neurogenesis via administering SST subcutaneously to P7 mice for 7 days. (3) Results: In the hippocampal CA1 region, SST immunoreactivity reaches peak at P14. However, SST immunoreactivity significantly decreased at P21. In the CA2/3 region, the SST expression pattern was similar to the CA1, and SST-immunoreactive cells were most abundant at P14. In the dentate gyrus, SST-immunoreactive cells were most abundant at P7 and P14 in the polymorphic layer; as in CA1-3 regions, the immunoreactivity decreased at P21. To elucidate the role of SST in postnatal development, we administered SST subcutaneously to P7 mice for 7 days. In the subgranular zone of the hippocampal dentate gyrus, a significant increase was observed in immunoreactivity of doublecortin (DCX)-positive neuroblast after administration of SST.; (4) Conclusions: SST expression in the hippocampal sub-regions is transiently increased during the postnatal formation of the hippocampus and decreases after P21. In addition, SST is involved in neuroblast differentiation in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus.

Cu,Zn-Superoxide Dismutase has Minimal Effects Against Cuprizone-Induced Demyelination, Microglial Activation, and Neurogenesis Defects in the C57BL/6 Mouse Hippocampus.

Cuprizone causes consistent demyelination and oligodendrocyte damage in the mouse brain. Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) has neuroprotective potential against various neurological disorders, such as transient cerebral ischemia and traumatic brain injury. In this study, we investigated whether SOD1 has neuroprotective effects against cuprizone-induced demyelination and adult hippocampal neurogenesis in C57BL/6 mice, using the PEP-1-SOD1 fusion protein to facilitate the delivery of SOD1 protein into hippocampal neurons. Eight weeks feeding of cuprizone-supplemented (0.2%) diets caused a significant decrease in myelin basic protein (MBP) expression in the stratum lacunosum-moleculare of the CA1 region, the polymorphic layer of the dentate gyrus, and the corpus callosum, while ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule 1 (Iba-1)-immunoreactive microglia showed activated and phagocytic phenotypes. In addition, cuprizone treatment reduced proliferating cells and neuroblasts as shown using Ki67 and doublecortin immunostaining. Treatment with PEP-1-SOD1 to normal mice did not show any significant changes in MBP expression and Iba-1-immunoreactive microglia. However, Ki67-positive proliferating cells and doublecortin-immunoreactive neuroblasts were significantly decreased. Simultaneous treatment with PEP-1-SOD1 and cuprizone-supplemented diets did not ameliorate the MBP reduction in these regions, but mitigated the increase of Iba-1 immunoreactivity in the corpus callosum and alleviated the reduction of MBP in corpus callosum and proliferating cells, not neuroblasts, in the dentate gyrus. In conclusion, PEP-1-SOD1 treatment only has partial effects to reduce cuprizone-induced demyelination and microglial activation in the hippocampus and corpus callosum and has minimal effects on proliferating cells in the dentate gyrus.

Dynamic Reconstruction and Mesh Compression of 4D Volumetric Model Using Correspondence-Based Deformation for Streaming Service.

A sequence of 3D models generated using volumetric capture has the advantage of retaining the characteristics of dynamic objects and scenes. However, in volumetric data, since 3D mesh and texture are synthesized for every frame, the mesh of every frame has a different shape, and the brightness and color quality of the texture is various. This paper proposes an algorithm to consistently create a mesh of 4D volumetric data using dynamic reconstruction. The proposed algorithm comprises remeshing, correspondence searching, and target frame reconstruction by key frame deformation. We make non-rigid deformation possible by applying the surface deformation method of the key frame. Finally, we propose a method of compressing the target frame using the target frame reconstructed using the key frame with error rates of up to 98.88% and at least 20.39% compared to previous studies. The experimental results show the proposed method's effectiveness by measuring the geometric error between the deformed key frame and the target frame. Further, by calculating the residual between two frames, the ratio of data transmitted is measured to show a compression performance of 18.48%.

Robust Estimation and Optimized Transmission of 3D Feature Points for Computer Vision on Mobile Communication Network.

Due to the amount of transmitted data and the security of personal or private information in wireless communication, there are cases where the information for a multimedia service should be directly transferred from the user's device to the cloud server without the captured original images. This paper proposes a new method to generate 3D (dimensional) keypoints based on a user's mobile device with a commercial RGB camera in a distributed computing environment such as a cloud server. The images are captured with a moving camera and 2D keypoints are extracted from them. After executing feature extraction between continuous frames, disparities are calculated between frames using the relationships between matched keypoints. The physical distance of the baseline is estimated by using the motion information of the camera, and the actual distance is calculated by using the calculated disparity and the estimated baseline. Finally, 3D keypoints are generated by adding the extracted 2D keypoints to the calculated distance. A keypoint-based scene change method is proposed as well. Due to the existing similarity between continuous frames captured from a camera, not all 3D keypoints are transferred and stored, only the new ones. Compared with the ground truth of the TUM dataset, the average error of the estimated 3D keypoints was measured as 5.98 mm, which shows that the proposed method has relatively good performance considering that it uses a commercial RGB camera on a mobile device. Furthermore, the transferred 3D keypoints were decreased to about 73.6%.

The neuroprotective effects of phosphoglycerate mutase 5 are mediated by decreasing oxidative stress in HT22 hippocampal cells and gerbil hippocampus.

Phosphoglycerate mutase 5 (PGAM5), a glycolytic enzyme, plays an important role in cell death and regulation of mitochondrial dynamics. In this study, we investigated the effects of PGAM5 on oxidative stress in HT22 hippocampal cells and ischemic damage in the gerbil hippocampus to elucidate the role of PGAM5 in oxidative and ischemic stress. Constructs were designed with a PEP-1 expression vector to facilitate the intracellular delivery of PGAM5 proteins. We observed time- and concentration-dependent increases in the intracellular delivery of the PEP-1-PGAM5 protein, but not its control protein (PGAM5), in HT22 cells, and morphologically demonstrated the localization of the transduced protein, which was stably expressed in the cytoplasm after 12 h of PEP-1-PGAM5 treatment. PEP-1-PGAM5 treatment significantly ameliorated cell death, reactive oxygen species formation, DNA fragmentation, and the reduction of cell proliferation induced by H2O2 treatment in HT22 cells. In addition, PEP-1-PGAM5 was effectively delivered to the gerbil hippocampus 8 h after treatment, and ischemia-induced hyperlocomotion and neuronal death in the hippocampal CA1 region were significantly alleviated 1 and 4 days after ischemia, respectively. Ischemia-induced microglial activation was also mitigated by treatment with 1.0 mg/kg PEP-1-PGAM5. At 3 h after ischemia, PEP-1-PGAM5 treatment significantly ameliorated the increase in lipid peroxidation, as assessed by malondialdehyde and hydroperoxide levels, and decreased glutathione levels (increases in glutathione disulfide, the oxidized form of glutathione) in the hippocampus. Two days after ischemia, treatment with PEP-1-PGAM5 significantly alleviated the ischemia-induced reduction in glutathione peroxidase activity and further increased superoxide dismutase activity in the hippocampus. The neuroprotective effects of PEP-1-PGAM5 are partially mediated by a reduction in oxidative stress, such as the formation of reactive oxygen species, and increases in the activity of antioxidants such as glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase.

3D Static Point Cloud Registration by Estimating Temporal Human Pose at Multiview.

This paper proposes a new technique for performing 3D static-point cloud registration after calibrating a multi-view RGB-D camera using a 3D (dimensional) joint set. Consistent feature points are required to calibrate a multi-view camera, and accurate feature points are necessary to obtain high-accuracy calibration results. In general, a special tool, such as a chessboard, is used to calibrate a multi-view camera. However, this paper uses joints on a human skeleton as feature points for calibrating a multi-view camera to perform calibration efficiently without special tools. We propose an RGB-D-based calibration algorithm that uses the joint coordinates of the 3D joint set obtained through pose estimation as feature points. Since human body information captured by the multi-view camera may be incomplete, a joint set predicted based on image information obtained through this may be incomplete. After efficiently integrating a plurality of incomplete joint sets into one joint set, multi-view cameras can be calibrated by using the combined joint set to obtain extrinsic matrices. To increase the accuracy of calibration, multiple joint sets are used for optimization through temporal iteration. We prove through experiments that it is possible to calibrate a multi-view camera using a large number of incomplete joint sets.

Neuroprotective Effects of Purpurin Against Ischemic Damage via MAPKs, Bax, and Oxidative Stress Cascades in the Gerbil Hippocampus.

Purpurin has various effects, including anti-inflammatory effects, and can efficiently cross the blood-brain barrier. In the present study, we investigated the effects of purpurin on oxidative stress in HT22 cells and mild brain damage in the gerbil hippocampal CA1 region induced by transient forebrain ischemia. Oxidative stress induced by H2O2 was significantly ameliorated by treatment with purpurin, based on changes in cell death, DNA fragmentation, formation of reactive oxygen species, and pro-apoptotic (Bax)/anti-apoptotic (Bcl-2) protein levels. In addition, treatment with purpurin significantly reduced the phosphorylation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK), and p38 signaling in HT22 cells. Transient forebrain ischemia in gerbils led to a significant increase in locomotor activity 1 day after ischemia and significant decrease in number of surviving cells in the CA1 region 4 days after ischemia. Administration of purpurin reduced the travel distance 1 day after ischemia and abrogates the neuronal death in the hippocampal CA1 region 4 days after ischemia based on immunohistochemical and histochemical staining for NeuN and Fluoro-Jade C, respectively. Purpurin treatment significantly decreased the activation of microglia and astrocytes as well as the increases of nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells p65 in the hippocampal CA1 region 4 days after ischemia and ameliorated the ischemia-induced transient increases of interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α in the hippocampus 6 h after ischemia. In addition, purpurin significantly alleviated the ischemia-induced phosphorylation of JNK, ERK, and p38 in the hippocampus 1 day after ischemia. Furthermore, purpurin treatment significantly mitigated the increases of Bax in the hippocampus 1 day after ischemia and the lipid peroxidation based on malondialdehyde and hydroperoxides levels 2 days after ischemia. These results suggest that purpurin can be one of the potential candidates to reduce neuronal damage and inflammatory responses after oxidative stress in HT22 cells or ischemic damage in gerbils.

A randomized controlled trial of three different local anesthetic methods for minor hand surgery.

Purpose: Hemostasis and local anesthetic injection are essential for minor hand surgeries under local anesthesia (LA). Wide awake local anesthesia no tourniquet (WALANT) became popular for achieving hemostasis without a tourniquet. However, a recent study reported that injection is more painful than tourniquet use in minor hand surgery. Therefore, this study aimed to compare three LA methods that differ according to injection and hemostasis, namely, the combination of a tourniquet and buffered lidocaine solution (CTB), WALANT, and conventional LA. Methods: This randomized prospective single-center study included 169 patients who underwent minor hand surgery between 2017 and 2020. We randomly allocated the patients to each group and recorded the pain and anxiety score during the surgery, as well as satisfaction after the surgery. Results: Pure lidocaine injection was significantly more painful than buffered lidocaine and WALANT solution injection (p < 0.001). Local anesthesia injection was significantly more painful than tourniquet use in all groups (p < 0.001). The intraoperative anxiety score was significantly lower in the CTB group than in the conventional LA and WALANT groups (p < 0.001). The satisfaction score was significantly higher in the CTB and WALANT groups than in the conventional LA group (p < 0.001). Conclusion: CTB for minor hand surgery under LA is associated with less injection pain and patient anxiety. The tourniquet is tolerable without much pain and waiting time. Thus, CTB in minor hand surgery is a good alternative to WALANT and conventional LA.

Reprogramming of nucleotide metabolism by interferon confers dependence on the replication stress response pathway in pancreatic cancer cells.

We determine that type I interferon (IFN) response biomarkers are enriched in a subset of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) tumors; however, actionable vulnerabilities associated with IFN signaling have not been systematically defined. Integration of a phosphoproteomic analysis and a chemical genomics synergy screen reveals that IFN activates the replication stress response kinase ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related protein (ATR) in PDAC cells and sensitizes them to ATR inhibitors. IFN triggers cell-cycle arrest in S-phase, which is accompanied by nucleotide pool insufficiency and nucleoside efflux. In combination with IFN, ATR inhibitors induce lethal DNA damage and downregulate nucleotide biosynthesis. ATR inhibition limits the growth of PDAC tumors in which IFN signaling is driven by stimulator of interferon genes (STING). These results identify a cross talk between IFN, DNA replication stress response networks, and nucleotide metabolism while providing the rationale for targeted therapeutic interventions that leverage IFN signaling in tumors.

Comparison of the Effects of Cuprizone on Demyelination in the Corpus Callosum and Hippocampal Progenitors in Young Adult and Aged Mice.

Cuprizone is commonly used to induce neuronal demyelination in mice. In the present study, we compared the cuprizone-induced demyelination in the corpus callosum and investigated the effects of cuprizone on proliferating cells and neuroblasts in the dentate gyrus of young adult and aged mice. 5-week- and 23-month-old mice were fed a normal diet or a 0.2% cuprizone-enriched diet for 5 weeks. Mice fed a cuprizone-supplemented diet showed a significant reduction in myelin basic protein-positive structures in the corpus callosum, with the reduction in myelinated fibers being confirmed by electron microscopic analysis. In addition, we observed a marked increase in Ki67-positive proliferating cells and doublecortin-immunoreactive neuroblasts in young adult mice in response to cuprizone treatment, although not in aged mice, as the basal levels of these cells were significantly lower in these older mice. Furthermore, Ser133-phosphorylated cAMP response element-binding protein (pCREB)-positive nuclei and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) protein levels were significantly reduced in young adult mice following cuprizone treatment in young adult, although again not in the aged mice. However, in both young adult and aged mice, there were no significant reductions in hippocampal mature neurons in response to cuprizone treatment. These observations indicate that in the mice of both age groups a cuprizone-supplemented diet contributes to an increase in demyelination in the corpus callosum and neural progenitor cells in the dentate gyrus, although the damage is more pronounced in young adult mice. This demyelination and reduction in neural progenitor cells may be associated with changes in the levels of BDNF and pCREB in the dentate gyrus.

Phase-only hologram video compression using a deep neural network for up-scaling and restoration.

This paper proposes a coding method for compressing a phase-only hologram video (PoHV), which can be directly displayed in a commercial phase-only spatial light modulator. Recently, there has been active research to use a standard codec as an anchor to develop a new video coding for 3D data such as MPEG point cloud compression. The main merit of this approach is that if a new video codec is developed, the performance of relative coding methods can be increased simultaneously. Furthermore, compatibility is increased by the capability to use various anchor codecs, and the developing time is decreased. This paper uses a currently used video codec as an anchor codec and develops a coding method including progressive scaling and a deep neural network to overcome low temporal correlation between frames of a PoHV. Since it is difficult to temporally predict a correlation between frames of a PoHV, this paper adopts a scaling function and a neural network in the encoding and decoding process, not adding complexity to an anchor itself to predict temporal correlation. The proposed coding method shows an enhanced coding gain of an average of 22%, compared with an anchor in all coding conditions. When observing numerical and optical reconstructions, the result images by the proposed show clearer objects and less juddering than the result by the anchor.

Spatial and temporal changes in the PGE2 EP2 receptor in mice hippocampi during postnatal development and its relationship with cyclooxygenase-2.

OBJECTIVES: Prostaglandin E2 E-prostanoid 2 receptor (PGE2 EP2), downstream of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), plays an important role in inflammatory responses, but there are some reports about synaptic functions of COX-2 and PGE2 EP2 in the hippocampus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: C57BL/6J mice were sacrificed at postnatal days (P) 1, 7, 14, 28, and 56 for immunohistochemical staining for EP2 and doublecortin as well as western blot for EP2. In addition, COX-2 knockout and its wild-type mice were euthanized for immunohistochemical staining for EP2. RESULTS: EP2 immunoreactivity was observed in the majority of the cells in the dentate gyrus at P1 and P7, while at P14, it was detected in the outer granule cell layer and was confined to its subgranular zone at P28 and P56. EP2 protein levels in the hippocampal homogenates were also highest at P7 and lowest at P56. EP2 immunoreactivity was partially colocalized, with doublecortin (DCX)-immunoreactive neuroblasts appearing in the mid-zone of the granule cell layer at P14 and in the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus at P28. Co-localization of EP2 and DCX was significantly decreased in the dentate gyrus in the P28 group compared with that in the P14 group. In COX-2 knockout mice, EP2 immunoreactivity was significantly decreased in the hippocampal CA1 region (P=0.000165) and dentate gyrus (P=0.00898). CONCLUSION: EP2 decreases with age, which is expressed in DCX-immunoreactive neuroblasts in the dentate gyrus. This suggests that EP2 is closely linked to structural lamination and adult neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus.

Extracts from the Leaves of Cissus verticillata Ameliorate High-Fat Diet-Induced Memory Deficits in Mice.

We investigated the effects of Cissus verticillata leaf extract (CVE) on a high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity and memory deficits. Male mice (5 weeks of age) were fed vehicle (distilled water), or 30, 100, or 300 mg/kg of CVE once a day for 8 weeks with an HFD. Treatment with CVE resulted in lower body weight and glucose levels in a concentration- and feeding time-dependent manner. LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels were significantly lower in the CVE-treated HFD group than in the vehicle-treated HFD group. In contrast, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels did not show any significant changes. Lipid droplets and ballooning were reduced depending on the concentration of CVE treatment compared to the HFD group. Treatment with CVE ameliorated the increase in glucagon and immunoreactivities in the pancreas, and novel object recognition memory was improved by 300 mg/kg CVE treatment compared to the HFD group. More proliferating cells and differentiated neuroblasts were higher in mice treated with CVE than in vehicle-treated HFD-fed mice. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels were significantly decreased in the HFD group, which was facilitated by treatment with 300 mg/kg CVE in hippocampal homogenates. These results suggest that CVE ameliorates HFD-induced obesity and memory deficits in mice, associated with increased BDNF levels in the hippocampus.

Tat-p27 Ameliorates Neuronal Damage Reducing α-Synuclein and Inflammatory Responses in Motor Neurons After Spinal Cord Ischemia.

p27Kip1 (p27) regulates the cell cycle by inhibiting G1 progression in cells. Several studies have shown conflicting results on the effects of p27 against cell death in various insults. In the present study, we examined the neuroprotective effects of p27 against H2O2-induced oxidative stress in NSC34 cells and against spinal cord ischemia-induced neuronal damage in rabbits. To promote delivery into NSC34 cells and motor neurons in the spinal cord, Tat-p27 fusion protein and its control protein (Control-p27) were synthesized with or without Tat peptide, respectively. Tat-p27, but not Control-27, was efficiently introduced into NSC34 cells in a concentration- and time-dependent manner, and the protein was detected in the cytoplasm. Tat-p27 showed neuroprotective effects against oxidative stress induced by H2O2 treatment and reduced the formation of reactive oxygen species, DNA fragmentation, and lipid peroxidation in NSC34 cells. Tat-p27, but not Control-p27, ameliorated ischemia-induced neurological deficits and cell damage in the rabbit spinal cord. In addition, Tat-p27 treatment reduced the expression of α-synuclein, activation of microglia, and release of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1ß and tumor necrosis factor-α in the spinal cord. Taken together, these results suggest that Tat-p27 inhibits neuronal damage by decreasing oxidative stress, α-synuclein expression, and inflammatory responses after ischemia.