Gene flow in plants via pollen and seeds is asymmetrical at different geographic scales. Orchid seeds are adapted to long-distance wind dispersal but pollinium transfer is often influenced by ...pollinator behavior. We combined field studies with an analysis of genetic diversity among 155 physically mapped adults and 1105 F1 seedlings to evaluate the relative contribution of pollen and seed dispersal to overall gene flow among three sub-populations of the food-deceptive orchid Phalaenopsis pulcherrima on Hainan Island, China.
Phalaenopsis pulcherrima is self-sterile and predominantly outcrossing, resulting in high population-level genetic diversity, but plants are clumped and exhibit fine-scale genetic structuring. Even so, we detected low differentiation among sub-populations, with polynomial regression analysis suggesting gene flow via seed to be more restricted than that via pollen. Paternity analysis confirmed capsules of P. pulcherrima to each be sired by a single pollen donor, probably in part facilitated by post-pollination stigma obfuscation, with a mean pollen flow distance of 272.7 m. Despite limited sampling, we detected no loss of genetic diversity from one generation to the next.
Outcrossing mediated by deceptive pollination and self-sterility promote high genetic diversity in P. pulcherrima. Long-range pollinia transfer ensures connectivity among sub-populations, offsetting the risk of genetic erosion at local scales.
Background:
To assess the effectiveness of metformin treatment on long-term outcomes in first-ever stroke patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in China.
Methods:
From August to September ...2019, all patients with first-ever stroke and T2DM from 232 hospitals in China Mainland were included. The enrolled patients were divided into two groups: the metformin treatment (MT) and the no-metformin treatment (No-MT) groups. All discharged patients would receive a telephone follow-up at 12-month after admission.
Results:
In total, 7587 first-ever stroke patients with T2DM age: median (IQR) = 66 (57–73) years; 57.35% male were recruited. Out of those 7587 included patients, 3593 (47.36%) received MT. The in-hospital case fatality rate was lower in the MT group than the No-MT group MT group versus No-MT group: 1.09% versus 2.30%; absolute difference = −1.75% (95% CI = −2.15 to −1.17%); OR = 0.63 (95% CI = 0.47 to 0.84). The 12-month case fatality rate was lower in the MT group than the No-MT group 4.72% versus 8.05%; absolute difference = −4.05% (95% CI = −5.58 to −2.41); OR = 0.69 (95% CI = 0.50 to 0.88). The 12-month disability rate was also lower in the MT group than the No-MT group 14.74% versus 19.41%; absolute difference = −5.70% (95% CI = −7.25 to −3.22); OR = 0.83 (95% CI = 0.70 to 0.95). Furthermore, the recurrence rate did not differ significantly between the MT and No-MT groups (p = 0.29).
Conclusion:
The study reveals that metformin use in stroke patients with T2DM results in a less severe stroke and lower fatality and disability rates.
Currently, the clinical management of visceral pain remains unsatisfactory for many patients suffering from this disease. While preliminary animal studies have suggested the effectiveness of ...gabapentin in successfully treating visceral pain, the mechanism underlying its analgesic effect remains unclear. Evidence from other studies has demonstrated the involvement of protein kinase C (PKC) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase1/2 (ERK1/2) in the pathogenesis of visceral inflammatory pain. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that gabapentin produces analgesia for visceral inflammatory pain through its inhibitory effect on the PKC-ERK1/2 signaling pathway. Intracolonic injections of formalin were performed in rats to produce colitis pain. Our results showed that visceral pain behaviors in these rats decreased after intraperitoneal injection of gabapentin. These behaviors were also reduced by intrathecal injections of the PKC inhibitor, H-7, and the ERK1/2 inhibitor, PD98059. Neuronal firing of wide dynamic range neurons in L6-S1 of the rat spinal cord dorsal horn were significantly increased after intracolonic injection of formalin. This increased firing rate was inhibited by intraperitoneal injection of gabapentin and both the individual and combined intrathecal application of H-7 and PD98059. Western blot analysis also revealed that PKC membrane translocation and ERK1/2 phosphorylation increased significantly following formalin injection, confirming the recruitment of PKC and ERK1/2 during visceral inflammatory pain. These effects were also significantly reduced by intraperitoneal injection of gabapentin. Therefore, we concluded that the analgesic effect of gabapentin on visceral inflammatory pain is mediated through suppression of PKC and ERK1/2 signaling pathways. Furthermore, we found that the PKC inhibitor, H-7, significantly diminished ERK1/2 phosphorylation levels, implicating the involvement of PKC and ERK1/2 in the same signaling pathway. Thus, our results suggest a novel mechanism of gabapentin-mediated analgesia for visceral inflammatory pain through a PKC-ERK1/2 signaling pathway that may be a future therapeutic target for the treatment of visceral inflammatory pain.
China stroke surveillance report 2021 Tu, Wen-Jun; Wang, Long-De
Military Medical Research/Military medical research,
07/2023, Volume:
10, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Since 2015, stroke has become the leading cause of death and disability in China, posing a significant threat to the health of its citizens as a major chronic non-communicable disease. According to ...the China Stroke High-risk Population Screening and Intervention Program, an estimated 17.8 million 95% confidence interval (CI) 17.6-18.0 million adults in China had experienced a stroke in 2020, with 3.4 million (95% CI 3.3-3.5 million) experiencing their first-ever stroke and another 2.3 million (95% CI 2.2-2.4 million) dying as a result. Additionally, approximately 12.5% (95% CI 12.4-12.5%) of stroke survivors were left disabled, as defined by a modified Rankin Scale score greater than 1, equating to 2.2 million (95% CI 2.1-2.2 million) stroke-related disabilities in 2020. As the population ages and the prevalence of risk factors like diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia continues to rise and remains poorly controlled, the burden of stroke in China is also increasing. A large national epidemiological survey initiated by the China Hypertension League in 2017 showed that the prevalence of hypertension was 24.7%; the awareness, treatment, and control rates in hypertensive patients were: 60.1%, 42.5%, and 25.4%, respectively. A nationally representative sample of the Chinese mainland population showed that the weighted prevalence of total diabetes diagnosed by the American Diabetes Association criteria was 12.8%, suggesting there are 120 million adults with diabetes in China, and the awareness, treatment, and control rates in diabetic patients were: 43.3%, 49.0%, and 49.4%, respectively. The "Sixth National Health Service Statistical Survey Report in 2018" showed that the proportion of the obese population in China was 37.4%, an increase of 7.2 points from 2013. Data from 1599 hospitals in the Hospital Quality Monitoring System and Bigdata Observatory Platform for Stroke of China (BOSC) showed that a total of 3,418,432 stroke cases mean age ± standard error (SE) was (65.700 ± 0.006) years, and 59.1% were male were admitted during 2020. Of those, over 80% (81.9%) were ischemic stroke (IS), 14.9% were intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) strokes, and 3.1% were subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) strokes. The mean ± SE of hospitalization expenditures was Chinese Yuan (CNY) (16,975.6 ± 16.3), ranging from (13,310.1 ± 12.8) in IS to (81,369.8 ± 260.7) in SAH, and out-of-pocket expenses were (5788.9 ± 8.6), ranging from (4449.0 ± 6.6) in IS to (30,778.2 ± 156.8) in SAH. It was estimated that the medical cost of hospitalization for stroke in 2020 was CNY 58.0 billion, of which the patient pays approximately CNY 19.8 billion. In-hospital death/discharge against medical advice rate was 9.2% (95% CI 9.2-9.2%), ranging from 6.4% (95% CI 6.4-6.5%) for IS to 21.8% for ICH (95% CI 21.8-21.9%). From 2019 to 2020, the information about 188,648 patients with acute IS receiving intravenous thrombolytic therapy (IVT), 49,845 patients receiving mechanical thrombectomy (MT), and 14,087 patients receiving bridging (IVT + MT) were collected through BOSC. The incidence of intracranial hemorrhage during treatment was 3.2% (95% CI 3.2-3.3%), 7.7% (95% CI 7.5-8.0%), and 12.9% (95% CI 12.3-13.4%), respectively. And in-hospital death/discharge against medical advice rate was 8.9% (95% CI 8.8-9.0%), 16.5% (95% CI 16.2-16.9%), and 16.8% (95% CI 16.2-17.4%), respectively. A prospective nationwide hospital-based study was conducted at 231 stroke base hospitals (Level III) from 31 provinces in China through BOSC from January 2019 to December 2020 and 136,282 stroke patients were included and finished 12-month follow-up. Of those, over 86.9% were IS, 10.8% were ICH strokes, and 2.3% were SAH strokes. The disability rate % (95% CI) in survivors of stroke at 3-month and 12-month was 14.8% (95% CI 14.6-15.0%) and 14.0% (95% CI 13.8-14.2%), respectively. The mortality rate % (95% CI) of stroke at 3-month and 12-month was 4.2% (95% CI 4.1-4.3%) and 8.5% (95% CI 8.4-8.6%), respectively. The recurrence rate % (95% CI) of stroke at 3-month and 12-month was 3.6% (95% CI 3.5-3.7%) and 5.6% (95% CI 5.4-5.7%), respectively. The Healthy China 2030 Stroke Action Plan was launched as part of this review, and the above data provide valuable guidelines for future stroke prevention and treatment efforts in China.
Summary
Chronic cerebral circulation insufficiency (CCCI) may not be an independent disease; rather, it is a pervasive state of long‐term cerebral blood flow insufficiency caused by a variety of ...etiologies, and considered to be associated with either occurrence or recurrence of ischemic stroke, vascular cognitive impairment, and development of vascular dementia, resulting in disability and mortality worldwide. This review summarizes the features and recent progress of CCCI, mainly focusing on epidemiology, experimental research, pathophysiology, etiology, clinical manifestations, imaging presentation, diagnosis, and potential therapeutic regimens. Some research directions are briefly discussed as well.
Combinations of biomaterials and cells can effectively target delivery of cells or other therapeutic factors to the brain to rebuild damaged nerve pathways after brain injury. Porous ...collagen-chitosan scaffolds were prepared by a freeze-drying method based on brain tissue engineering. The scaffolds were impregnated with rat bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. A traumatic brain injury rat model was established using the 300 g weight free fall impact method. Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells/collagen-chitosan scaffolds were implanted into the injured brain. Modified neurological severity scores were used to assess the recovery of neurological function. The Morris water maze was employed to determine spatial learning and memory abilities. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was performed to measure pathological changes in brain tissue. Immunohistochemistry was performed for vascular endothelial growth factor and for 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine (BrdU)/neuron specific enolase and BrdU/glial fibrillary acidic protein. Our results demonstrated that the transplantation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells and collagen-chitosan scaffolds to traumatic brain injury rats remarkably reduced modified neurological severity scores, shortened the average latency of the Morris water maze, increased the number of platform crossings, diminished the degeneration of damaged brain tissue, and increased the positive reaction of vascular endothelial growth factor in the transplantation and surrounding areas. At 14 days after transplantation, increased BrdU/glial fibrillary acidic protein expression and decreased BrdU/neuron specific enolase expression were observed in bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in the injured area. The therapeutic effect of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells and collagen-chitosan scaffolds was superior to stereotactic injection of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells alone. To test the biocompatibility and immunogenicity of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells and collagen-chitosan scaffolds, immunosuppressive cyclosporine was intravenously injected 12 hours before transplantation and 1-5 days after transplantation. The above indicators were similar to those of rats treated with bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells and collagen-chitosan scaffolds only. These findings indicate that transplantation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in a collagen-chitosan scaffold can promote the recovery of neuropathological injury in rats with traumatic brain injury. This approach has the potential to be developed as a treatment for traumatic brain injury in humans. All experimental procedures were approved by the Institutional Animal Investigation Committee of Capital Medical University, China (approval No. AEEI-2015-035) in December 2015.
Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is associated with a high incidence of thrombotic events, either arterial thrombosis or venous thrombosis. However, APS-related non-thrombotic venous stenosis is ...rarely reported.
This study described two cases of young women with APS-related internal jugular vein stenosis (IJVS) and reviewed current literature on this issue, including clinical features, diagnosis, and treatment.
IJVS is a rather rare complication of APS. Two cases were reported for the first time that high titer of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) might mediate direct vessel wall damage and further induce venous stenosis despite long-term standardized anticoagulation to prevent thrombus formation. Therefore, dynamic monitoring of autoantibodies and concomitant use of anticoagulants and corticosteroids may be necessary to the management of APS and its complications.
Summary
Aims
The objective of this study was to evaluate cerebral venous recanalization with magnetic resonance black‐blood thrombus imaging (MRBTI) in patients with cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) ...who underwent batroxobin treatment in combination with anticoagulation.
Methods
A total of 31 CVT patients were enrolled in this real‐world registry study. The patients were divided into batroxobin (n = 21) and control groups (n = 10). In addition to the same standard anticoagulation as in the control group, patients in the batroxobin group underwent intravenous batroxobin for a total of three times.
Results
In the batroxobin group compared with the control group, we found better odds of recanalization degree adjusted OR (95%CI) of 8.10 (1.61‐40.7) and segment‐stenosis attenuation adjusted OR (95%CI) of 4.48 (1.69‐11.9) with batroxobin treatment. We further noted a higher ratio of patients with the attenuation of stenosis adjusted OR (95%CI) of 26.4 (1.10‐635); as well as a higher ratio of segments with stenosis reversion adjusted OR (95%CI) of 4.52 (1.48‐13.8). However, neurological deficits between the two groups showed no statistical difference at 90‐day follow‐up (P > 0.05).
Conclusions
Batroxobin may promote venous sinus recanalization and attenuate CVT‐induced stenosis. Further randomized study of this promising drug may be warranted to better delineate the amount of benefit.
Objective
To evaluate whether shorter door-to-needle times (DNT) with intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) for acute ischemic stroke are associated with improved 1-year outcomes in Chinese ...patients.
Methods
From August to September 2019, all first-ever ischemic stroke patients who were treated with intravenous tPA within 4.5 h of the time they were last known to be well from 232 hospitals in China were included. Patients were divided into four groups according to DNT time (≤ 45 min; 45–60 min; 60–90 min; > 90 min). All discharged patients would receive a telephone follow-up at 12-month after admission. Death and disability events were recorded.
Results
Finally, 2370 patients were analyzed. The median age was 65 years, 66.6% were male, and 2.4% were of ethnic minorities. In the 1-year follow-up, 211 patients died (8.9%; 95%CI: 7.8–10.0%). The patients (53.1%) had DNT times of longer than 45 min, compared with those treated within 45 min, did not have significantly higher 1-year mortality (8.9% vs 8.9% absolute difference, 0.03% {95% CI, − 0.05% to − 0.10%}, odd ratio {OR}, 1.00 {95% CI, 0.75 to 1.33}). In addition, 385 patients (16.2%; 14.8–17.3%) out of those survivors had disability events. The patients had DNT times of longer than 45 min, compared with those treated within 45 min, did not have significantly higher 1-year disability rate (18.9% vs 16.7% absolute difference, 1.9% {95% CI, 1.1% to 3.0%}, odd ratio {OR}, 1.22 {95% CI, 0.89 to 1.43}).
Conclusions
The results did not show that shorter DNT for tPA administration was significantly associated with better 1-year outcomes.
High-speed particle self-rotation near the wall of a hydrocyclone that causes the radial migration of the particles has been extensively investigated. However, the influence of this radial migration ...on the separation efficiency of the hydrocyclone remains unclear. Since this influence cannot be easily experimentally verified, we employed computational fluid dynamics to investigate the effect of particle rotation on the separation efficiency of a mini-hydrocyclone. A Reynolds stress model and discrete phase model were used to model the flow field and particle migration within the hydrocyclone. Considering the shear flow field and wall collision causing the rotation of particles, the movement trajectory, rotation velocity, and radial migration characteristics of particles entering from different inlet positions in a mini-hydrocyclone were studied. For the numerical simulation, the actual particle size distribution was considered. The results demonstrated that the particles rotated at a high velocity near the wall; the spiral-orbit radius of rotating particles was smaller than non-rotating particles; and high-speed rotating particles migrated from the wall to the central axis of the hydrocyclone. By including particle rotation into the hydrocyclone simulations, the simulated separation efficiency was consistent with experimental results. Further, the accuracy of the rotating particle simulation was 65% higher than the non-rotating particle simulation. Therefore, particle rotation is crucial for simulating the mini-hydrocyclone performance.
Display omitted
•Particle self-rotation affects the separation efficiency of mini-hydrocyclones.•Simulation efficiency considering particle rotation is closer to the experimental results.•Total particle rotation velocity is mainly affected by axial rotation component.•Many particles injected close to inlet wall enter the overflow due to rotation.
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