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Arildsen Gertsen posted an update 5 months, 3 weeks ago
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) poses a significant threat to human life and health. The intraneuronal accumulation of β-amyloid (Aβ) plaques in the brains of AD patients results in neuronal cell death, which is a key factor that triggers multiple changes in the pathogenesis of AD. The inhibition of Aβ-induced neuronal cell death may potentially help in the intervention and treatment of AD. Our previous study reported that tumor necrosis factor α-induced protein 1 (TNFAIP1) is induced by and promotes Aβ25-35-induced neurotoxicity in mouse neuronal cells, but the roles and regulatory mechanisms of TNFAIP1 are still largely unknown. In this study, our experimental results show that TNFAIP1 and p-TNFAIP1 (phosphorylation of TNFAIP1 at Ser280) are overexpressed in the neurons of the cortex and hippocampus in the brains of APP/PS1 mice, and the transcription factor NF-κB is involved in the Aβ-induced upregulation of TNFAIP1. Moreover, our results suggest that TNFAIP1 contributes to the Aβ-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, decreased mitochondrial membrane potential (∆Ψm), and neuronal cell death in human SH-SY5Y cells. #link# We further revealed that Aβ increases the binding of TNFAIP1 to RhoB, and knockdown of RhoB attenuates the TNFAIP1-induced apoptosis of human SH-SY5Y cells. These data suggest that TNFAIP1 is closely associated with AD pathogenesis, and overexpression of TNFAIP1 in the neurons of the brains of AD patients plays a role in apoptosis, at least in part, via RhoB signaling.It has been suggested that dysregulation of hormones is associated with schizophrenia (SCZ). This study aimed to measure the serum levels of progesterone and testosterone in 125 SCZ patients at different stages of treatment and 96 healthy control (HC) subjects. Our results showed that first-episode drug-free SCZ patients had significantly increased testosterone levels when compared with HC subjects, and chronic medication, but not short-term medication, further increased the serum testosterone levels in the patients. Further analysis suggested that the sex of the patients did not affect testosterone levels. In contrast, serum progesterone levels did not show significant differences between first-episode, drug-free SCZ patients and controls, and the antipsychotics increased progesterone levels in the male SCZ patients, but not female patients. Interestingly, our analyses demonstrated that the serum progesterone levels were negatively correlated with PANSS total score and PNASS positive score, suggesting a correlation between blood hormone levels and disease severity in SCZ patients. Taken together, our data showed differential changes in serum testosterone and progesterone levels in SCZ patients with or without antipsychotics, and our results suggest that increased sex hormone levels may be a defensive response to protect the human body under stress.
Conventional positron emission tomography can be used only preoperatively to identify lymph node metastases, and hence, these growths are difficult to locate intraoperatively. Previously, an intraoperative laparoscopic coincidence imaging system, with an external fixed detector array and a detector probe that can be moved and inserted into the stomach, was proposed to identify lymph node metastases during stomach cancer surgery. This paper proposes a prototype detector for this system.
GAGGCe (Gd
Al
Ga
O
Ce) scintillator crystals, one to one coupled with silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs), were used to identify 511keV photons. An optical tracking system followed the position and orientation of the movable detector. SiPM outputs were read out by time-over-threshold (TOT)-based application-specific integrated circuits, which converted the electrical charges into digital pulses. To identify the arrival time, channel number, and pulse width, which indicate the energy information of each TOT output, a data aly.HDR syndrome is characterized by the triad of primary hypoparathyroidism, sensorineural hearing loss and renal malformation with widely variable manifestations. It is an autosomal dominant inherited disease caused by a mutation of the GATA3 (NM_001002295.2), which is located on chromosome 10p14. Congenital heart disease, such as tetralogy of Fallot, a typical complication of DiGeorge syndrome, is a rare complication of HDR syndrome. We herein report a case of HDR syndrome coexisting tetralogy of Fallot with a novel mutation, c.964C > T (p.Gln322*). This case suggested that the screening of renal involvement should be carefully performed in patients with a phenotypic combination of hypoparathyroidism and sensorineural hearing loss, to facilitate the early diagnosis of HDR syndrome. In addition, when the deletion of chromosome 22q11.2 is not detected by a fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis in patients exhibiting the partial phenotype of DiGeorge syndrome, the possibility of HDR syndrome should be considered and the renal function should be repeatedly evaluated.The plantaris muscle is located in the posterior aspect of the superficial compartment of the lower leg, running from the lateral condyle of the femur to the calcaneal tuberosity. Classically, it is characterized by a small and fusiform muscle belly, which then changes into a long slender tendon. From the evolutionary point of view, the muscle is considered vestigial. However, it has recently been suspected of being a highly specialized sensory muscle because of its high density of muscle spindles. It has a noticeable tendency to vary in respect of both origin and insertion. Researchers have published many reports on the potential clinical significance of the muscle belly and tendon, including mid-portion Achilles tendinopathy, ‘tennis leg syndrome’, and popliteal artery entrapment syndrome. The right knee joint area was subjected to classical anatomical dissection, during which an atypical plantaris muscle was found and examined in detail. Accurate morphometric measurements were made. The muscle belly was assessed as bifurcated. Morphologically, superior and inferior parts were presented. There was Akti-1/2 ic50 (named band A) with the iliotibial tract and an additional insertion (named band B) to the semimembranosus tendon. Both bands A and B presented very broad fan-shaped attachments. The human plantaris muscle is of considerable interest and has frequent morphological variations in its proximal part. Its specific characteristics can cause clinical problems and lead to confusion in diagnosis. More studies are needed to define its actual features and functions.