Effect of Ultramicro Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles on Cerebral Infarction in Mice.

To investigate the effect of Feraheme (ferumoxytol) intravenous injection on cerebral infarction volume and inflammatory response in mice with permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion. We randomly divided 30 CS7BL6J mice into sham operated group, normal saline control group, and Feraheme group with 10 mice in each group. The model of permanent occlusion of right middle cerebral artery was made via the modified suture method in the normal saline control group and the Feraheme group. After 24 h of establishment the model, the tail vein was injected with 18 mg/kg Feraheme in the sham operation group and Feraheme group, and the normal saline control group was injected with an equal volume of normal saline. Neurobehavioral scores were obtained 24 h (before injection of Feraheme or normal saline) and 48 h (before MRI) after the model was established. The volume of cerebral infarction was calculated according to T2 weighted imaging. Orbital blood was collected after nodal scanning to detect serum TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-6 levels. Then, the brain tissues of mice were killed for HE staining and IBAL immunohistochemical staining. No significant differences in cerebral infarction volume and neurological function were observed between the normal saline control group and Feraheme group. The levels of TNF-α, IL-1ß and IL-6 in the normal saline control group and Feraheme group were significantly higher than those in the sham operation group (P < 0.05), but there were no significant differences between the normal saline control group and Feraheme group. We showed that intravenous injection of 18 mg/kg Feraheme 24 h after cerebral ischemia does not affect the infarct volume and inflammatory response, suggesting that the dose of Feraheme can be used for molecular imaging studies of inflammatory response after cerebral ischemia.

Sarsasapogenin reverses depressive-like behaviors and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors induced by olfactory bulbectomy.

Cholinergic signalling in the hippocampus may contribute to the aetiology of mood regulation. Antidepressants can reverse the increase in acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity induced by olfactory bulbectomy. The activation of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) also alleviates the symptoms of depression. This study advances the development of sarsasapogenin, which interacts with cholinergic signalling and has a favourable antidepressant profile in olfactory bulbectomised (OB) rats. We examined OB-induced changes in cholinergic signalling, as well as AChE, α4-nAChR, and α7-nAChR expression in the hippocampus. The results indicate that abnormal cholinergic signalling in the hippocampus contributes to the development of depression in the OB rat model. This depression may be alleviated following treatment with sarsasapogenin.

Substrate temperature effect on the refractive index and a two-step film method to detect small inhomogeneities in optical films.

Nb2O5 films were deposited by a reactive magnetron sputtering technique. The average refractive index was found to increase with the rise of substrate temperature. Modulated interference transmittance spectra were observed in the two-step films, which were prepared by stopping the deposition process in the middle of the designed sputtering time, and then, after a full cooling down to room temperature, starting the same deposition process again to complete the whole preparation of the films. A linearly graded-index model was used to explain the interference behavior. It was proved that the two-step film method was sensitive to the small inhomogeneity in the films. We also suggest that the inhomogeneity of sputtered films can be minimized by controlling the substrate temperature at a constant value.