Object-centered family interactions for young autistic children: a diary study.

Autistic Children often struggle with social interaction and communication, studies have found that many of them prefer to interact with objects than people. However, there is a lack of research exploring the specific characteristics and factors involved in interactions within families with autistic children where objects are the center of the interaction. This paper describes the process and findings of a diary study exploring how young autistic children interact with their families through objects in natural scenarios. A one-week diary study was conducted with six families with young autistic children. Diary videos were recorded onsite and coded later according to a social interaction behavior scheme with corresponding diary entries. Qualitative data analysis was conducted to reveal possible patterns. Results revealed ongoing difficulties in establishing and maintaining family interaction and identified influential factors of object-centered family interaction. The most prevalent pattern observed was parents taking the lead in interactions, followed by the child's confirmation response. Remarkably, daily necessities emerged as potential physical mediums for enhancing family interactions, opening avenues for exploring tangible designs in human-computer interaction. These findings offer valuable implications for future research and the development of innovative designs that promote enriching interactions for autistic children and their families.

Oily fish and raw vegetable consumption can decrease the risk of AQP4-positive neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders: a Mendelian-randomization study.

Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) are severe inflammatory disorders of the central nervous system targeting aquaporin-4 (AQP4). The risk factors for NMOSD remain to be determined, though they may be related to diet and nutrition. This study aimed to explore the possibility of a causal relationship between specific food intake and AQP4-positive NMOSD risk. The study followed a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) design. Genetic instruments and self-reported information on the intake of 29 types of food were obtained from a genome-wide association study (GWAS) on 445,779 UK Biobank participants. A total of 132 individuals with AQP4-positive NMOSD and 784 controls from this GWAS were included in our study. The associations were evaluated using inverse-variance-weighted meta-analysis, weighted-median analysis, and MR-Egger regression. A high consumption of oily fish and raw vegetables was associated with a decreased risk of AQP4-positive NMOSD (odds ratio [OR] = 1.78 × 10-16, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.60 × 10-25-1.22 × 10-7, p = 0.001; OR = 5.28 × 10-6, 95% CI = 4.67 × 10-11-0.598, p = 0.041, respectively). The results were consistent in the sensitivity analyses, and no evidence of directional pleiotropy was observed. Our study provides useful implications for the development of AQP4-positive NMOSD prevention strategies. Further research is needed to determine the exact causal relationship and mechanisms underlying the association between specific food intake and AQP4-positive NMOSD.

Clinical characteristics of late-onset neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder.

BACKGROUND: Anti-aquaporin-4 (AQP-4) immunoglobulin G (IgG) is a major autoimmune antibody that contributes to the pathogenesis of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD). NMOSD often presents as disability, severe sensory impairment, and sleep disorders, which can cause anxiety and depression and further affect the quality of life. The age of onset is a key factor influencing the prognosis of NMOSD. However, this result was based on studies involving only anti-aquaporin-4 (AQP4) immunoglobulin G (IgG)-seropositive NMOSD patients or studies using the 2006 NMOSD diagnosis criteria. Therefore, further study of the age of onset of NMOSD is valuable. This study aimed to describe the clinical and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) differences between early-onset neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (EO-NMOSD) and late-onset (LO)-NMOSD patients. METHODS: Fifty patients were enrolled, their anti-AQP4-IgG titers were measured, and brain and spinal cord MRIs were obtained. Additionally, several questionnaires related to disease severity, anxiety, depression, cognition, sleep, pain, and fatigue were collected. RESULTS: Higher AQP4-IgG seropositivity, higher AQP4-IgG titer, frequency of thoracic myelitis, and white matter hyperintensities (WMH), as well as greater severity of disability, greater severity of sleep disorders, higher anxiety, poorer cognitive function, and higher clinical dementia rating (CDR)-community affairs scores were observed in late-onset (LO)-NMOSD patients than those in early-onset (EO)-NMOSD. AQP4-IgG titer positively correlated with age, annual relapse rate, Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) sensory scores, Activity of Daily Living Scale (ADL) scores, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) scores. The EDSS-sensory scores positively correlated with age, relapse time, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, PSQI, ADL, and CDR. WMH was positively correlated with age, EDSS-sensory scores, PSQI scores, and CDR scores and negatively correlated with the California Verbal Learning Test scores. CONCLUSION: LO-NMOSD patients have worse prognoses than those of EO-NMOSD patients. Higher AQP4-IgG titers, more WMHs, thoracic myelitis, and severe sensory symptoms are associated with cognition, depression, anxiety, and sleep disorders.

Acetylcholine receptor binding antibody-associated myasthenia gravis, myocarditis, and rhabdomyolysis induced by tislelizumab in a patient with colon cancer: A case report and literature review.

Despite the intriguing therapeutic prospects offered by immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), immune-related adverse events (irAEs) become an increasingly important safety issue. Herein, we report a patient with locally advanced colorectal cancer (LACRC) who received anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) (tislelizumab) therapy, then developed weakness of the limbs and drooping eyelids. He experienced sequential irAEs including severe myasthenia gravis, myocarditis, and rhabdomyolysis. Although many irAEs caused by tislelizumab have been reported, the cooccurrence of severe myasthenia gravis, myocarditis, and rhabdomyolysis caused by tislelizumab has not been described. The patient responded well to methylprednisolone and intravenous immunoglobulin therapy. This case illustrates the severe toxicity caused by ICIs, highlighting the importance of early prevention, early diagnosis, and appropriate management of irAEs. Multidisciplinary discussions should be held to improve the prognosis of patients.

New natural compound inhibitors of PDGFRA (platelet-derived growth factor receptor α) based on computational study for high-grade glioma therapy.

Background: High-grade glioma (HGG) is a malignant brain tumor that is common and aggressive in children and adults. In the current medical paradigm, surgery and radiotherapy are the standard treatments for HGG patients. Despite this, the overall prognosis is still very bleak. Studies have shown that platelet-derived growth factor receptor α (PDGFRA) is an essential target to treat tumors and inhibiting the activity of PDGFRA can improve the prognosis of HGG. Thus, PDGFRA inhibitors are critical to developing drugs and cancer treatment. Objective: The purpose of this study was to screen lead compounds and candidate drugs with potential inhibitors against platelet-derived growth factor receptor α (PDGFRA) from the drug library (ZINC database) in order to improve the prognosis of patients with high-grade glioma (HGG). Materials and methods: In our study, we selected Imatinib as the reference drug. A series of computer-aided technologies, such as Discovery Studio 2019 and Schrodinger, were used to screen and assess potential inhibitors of PDGFRA. The first step was to calculate the LibDock scores and then analyze the pharmacological and toxicological properties. Following this, we docked the small molecules selected in the previous steps with PDGFRA to study their docking mechanism and affinity. In addition, molecular dynamics simulation was used to determine whether the ligand-PDGFRA complex was stable in nature. Results: Two novel natural compounds 1 and 2 (ZINC000008829785 and ZINC000013377891) from the ZINC database were found binding to PDGFRA with more favorable interaction energy. Also, they were predicted with less Ames mutagenicity, rodent carcinogenicity, non-developmental toxic potential, and tolerant with cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6). The dynamic simulation analysis demonstrated that ZINC000008829785-PDGFRA and ZINC000013377891-PDGFRA dimer complex had more favorable potential energy compared with Imatinib, and they can exist in natural environments stably. Conclusion: ZINC000008829785 and ZINC000013377891 might provide a solid foundation for drugs that inhibit PDGFRA in HGG. In addition to being safe drug candidates, these compounds had important implications for improving drugs targeting PDGFRA.

An Unobtrusive Stress Recognition System for the Smart Office.

This paper presents a novel approach to monitor office workers' behavioral patterns and heart rate variability. We integrated an EMFi sensor into a chair to measure the pressure changes caused by a user's body movements and heartbeat. Then, we employed machine learning methods to develop a classification model through which different work behaviors (body moving, typing, talking and browsing) could be recognized from the sensor data. Subsequently, we developed a BCG processing method to process the data recognized as `browsing' and further calculate heart rate variability. The results show that the developed model achieved classification accuracies of up to 91% and the HRV could be calculated effectively with an average error of 5.77ms. By combining these behavioral and physiological measures, the proposed approach portrays work-related stress in a more comprehensive manner and could contribute an unobtrusive early stress detection system for future smart offices.

A Review of Wearable Sensor Systems for Monitoring Body Movements of Neonates.

Characteristics of physical movements are indicative of infants' neuro-motor development and brain dysfunction. For instance, infant seizure, a clinical signal of brain dysfunction, could be identified and predicted by monitoring its physical movements. With the advance of wearable sensor technology, including the miniaturization of sensors, and the increasing broad application of micro- and nanotechnology, and smart fabrics in wearable sensor systems, it is now possible to collect, store, and process multimodal signal data of infant movements in a more efficient, more comfortable, and non-intrusive way. This review aims to depict the state-of-the-art of wearable sensor systems for infant movement monitoring. We also discuss its clinical significance and the aspect of system design.