Impact of mechanical barrier damage and interleukin-17 on symptoms in patients with post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome.

Aims/Background The pathogenesis of irritable bowel syndrome encompasses various factors, including abnormal gastrointestinal motility, heightened visceral sensitivity, dysfunction in the brain-gut axis, psychological influences, and disturbances in the intestinal flora. These factors manifest primarily as persistent or intermittent abdominal pain, diarrhoea, alterations in bowel habits, or changes in stool characteristics. In our investigation, we delve into the repercussions of mechanical barrier damage and immune dysfunction on symptoms among patients with post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome. Methods This study recruited a total of 20 healthy controls and 49 patients diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome. Among the irritable bowel syndrome patients, we categorised them into two groups based on the ROME IV diagnostic criteria: the post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome group (n=23) and the non-post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome group (n=26). To compare clinical features, we utilised the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale, Self-Rating Depression Scale, and Self-Rating Anxiety Scale. Furthermore, we employed various techniques including haematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining, electron microscopy, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay, and flow cytometry to assess changes in immune cells, immune factors, inflammatory biomarkers, and intestinal barrier function. Results Under haematoxylin and eosin staining, post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome patients demonstrated increased neutrophils and plasma cells compared to the control group. Additionally, electron microscopy revealed ultrastructural changes such as the widening of the epithelial cell gap in the intestinal mucosa among post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome patients. Comparatively, the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale, Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, and Self-Rating Depression Scale scores were significantly elevated in the post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome group in contrast to both the control group and the non- post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome group (p < 0.05). Moreover, post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome patients exhibited a notably higher neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio compared to the control group (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the levels of interleukin-17 (IL-17) were elevated in post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome patients compared to the control group (p < 0.05). Additionally, the post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome group displayed a higher percentage of T helper 17 (Th17) cells compared to both the control and non-post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome groups (p < 0.05). Conclusion Acute gastrointestinal infection can disrupt the balance of intestinal flora, leading to dysbiosis. This dysbiosis can trigger the release of pro-inflammatory factors, including interleukin-17, which contributes to the impairment of the intestinal mucosal barrier. Consequently, this sets the stage for the development of long-lasting, mild chronic intestinal inflammation, ultimately culminating in the onset of post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome. Furthermore, within the framework of the gut-brain axis interaction, anxiety and depression may exacerbate intestinal inflammation in post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome patients. This interaction can perpetuate and prolong clinical symptoms in individuals with post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome, further complicating the management of the condition.

i-MYO: A multi-grasp prosthetic hand control system based on gaze movements, augmented reality, and myoelectric signals.

BACKGROUND: Controlling a multi-grasp prosthetic hand still remains a challenge. This study explores the influence of merging gaze movements and augmented reality in bionics on improving prosthetic hand control. METHODS: A control system based on gaze movements, augmented reality, and myoelectric signals (i-MYO) was proposed. In the i-MYO, the GazeButton was introduced into the controller to detect the grasp-type intention from the eye-tracking signals, and the proportional velocity scheme based on the i-MYO was used to control hand movement. RESULTS: The able-bodied subjects with no prior training successfully transferred objects in 91.6% of the cases and switched the optimal grasp types in 97.5%. The patient could successfully trigger the EMG to control the hand holding the objects in 98.7% of trials in around 3.2 s and spend around 1.3 s switching the optimal grasp types in 99.2% of trials. CONCLUSIONS: Merging gaze movements and augmented reality in bionics can widen the control bandwidth of prosthetic hand. With the help of i-MYO, the subjects can control a prosthetic hand using six grasp types if they can manipulate two muscle signals and gaze movement.

Sand Burial, Rather than Salinity or Drought, Is the Main Stress That Limits the Germination Ability of Sophora alopecuroides L. Seed in the Desert Steppe of Yanchi, Ningxia, China.

Global change and environmental pollution have reawakened ecologists to the great threat of multi-stress interactions to different growth stages of plants. Sophora alopecuroides L., a dune plant, has been widely studied for its medicinal components and strong salinity tolerance. S. alopecuroides seeds, obtained from the desert steppe of Yanchi, Ningxia, China, were used to analyze the effects of sand burial, salinity, drought, and their interactions on seed germination (germination percentage, germination energy, and germination index). The results showed that sand burial and salinity stress had significant effects on the seed germination ability of S. alopecuroides, and drought stress had no significant effect, but the interaction of the three stresses had a significant effect. Under different drought-stress treatments, the interaction of no sand burial and a certain degree of salinity stress significantly improved the germination ability of S. alopecuroides, and the overall intensity of the effects of the three stresses showed that sand burial > salinity > drought. Considering the germination percentage, germination energy, and germination index of S. alopecuroides under various stress interactions, the treatment of no sand burial × 1% soil saline-alkali content × 18-20% soil water content was adopted to maximize the germination ability of S. alopecuroides. In the desert steppe area of Yanchi, Ningxia, sand burial stress was still the most limiting factor for seed germination of S. alopecuroides, and soil saline-alkali content should be increased moderately, and soil moisture should be ensured to obtain the best germination ability.

Functional Trait Responses of Sophora alopecuroides L. Seedlings to Diverse Environmental Stresses in the Desert Steppe of Ningxia, China.

The seedling stage of plants is a crucial and vulnerable period in population and community dynamics. Despite this, studies on how plant traits respond to different environmental stresses often tend to overlook this early stage. Our study focused on Sophora alopecuroides L. seedlings in Ningxia Yanchi desert steppe, analyzing the effects of sand burial, salinity, and drought on their key aboveground and belowground traits. The results showed that sand burial significantly negatively affected stem biomass (SB), leaf biomass (LB), stem diameter (SD), leaf length (LL), leaf width (LW), leaf area (LA), and total root volume (RV), but positively influenced total root length (RL). As sand burial depth increased, SB, LB, SD, LL, LW, LA, RV, root biomass (RB), RV, and lateral root numbers (LRN) significantly decreased. Salinity stress negatively affected SB, LB, SD, LL, LW, LA, RB, RL, and RV, with these traits declining as the stress concentration increased. Drought stress had a positive effect on SD and LL, with both traits showing an increase as the intensity of the drought stress intensified; however, it adversely affected RL. In Ningxia Yanchi desert steppe, salinity stress had the most significant effect on the traits of S. alopecuroides seedlings, followed by sand burial, with drought having the least significant effect. This study provides essential theoretical support for understanding how S. alopecuroides seedlings cope with environmental stresses in their early life stages.

Computer Vision-Based Grasp Pattern Recognition With Application to Myoelectric Control of Dexterous Hand Prosthesis.

Artificial intelligence provides new feasibilities to the control of dexterous prostheses. To achieve suitable grasps over various objects, a novel computer vision-based classification method assorting objects into different grasp patterns is proposed in this paper. This method can be applied in the autonomous control of the multi-fingered prosthetic hand, as it can help users rapidly complete "reach-and-pick up" tasks on various daily objects with low demand on the myoelectric control. Firstly, an RGB-D image database (121 objects) was established according to four important grasp patterns (cylindrical, spherical, tripod, and lateral). The image samples in the RGB-D dataset were acquired on a large variety of daily objects of different sizes, shapes, postures (16), as well as different illumination conditions (4) and camera positions (4). Then, different inputs and structures of the discrimination model (multilayer CNN) were tested in terms of the classification success rate through cross-validation. Our results showed that depth data play an important role in grasp pattern recognition. The bimodal data (Gray-D) integrating both grayscale and depth information about the objects can improve the classification accuracy acquired from the RGB images (> 10%) effectively. Within the database, the network could achieve the classification with high accuracy (98%); it also has a strong generalization capability on novel samples (93.9 ± 3.0%). We finally applied the method on a dexterous prosthetic hand and tested the whole system on performing the "reach-and-pick up" tasks. The experiments showed that the proposed computer vision-based myoelectric control method (Vision-EMG) could significantly improve the control effectiveness (6.4 s), with comparison to the traditional coding-based myoelectric control method (Coding-EMG, 13 s ).

Influence of earthquake exposure and left-behind status on severity of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression in Chinese adolescents.

In the Longmenshan seismic fault zone in the Sichuan province of China, many children and adolescents have been exposed to the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake and/or the 2013 Lushan earthquake, and many are left alone for extended periods by parents who migrate to larger cities for work. We wished to examine how these two kinds of trauma-earthquake exposure and left-behind status-influence severity of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depressive reactions. A cross-sectional survey of 2447 adolescents aged 13-18 at 11 schools in three cities in the Longmenshan fault zone was conducted in 2016. Potential relationships of scores on the Children's Revised Impact of Event Scale (CRIES-13) and the Depression Self-Rating Scale (KADS-6) with severity of PTSD and depression symptoms were explored using ANOVA and multiple hierarchical linear regression. Prevalence of post-traumatic stress and depression symptoms were higher among left-behind children than among those not left behind, and both types of symptoms were more severe in children exposed to both earthquakes than in children exposed only to the Lushan earthquake. Our results suggest that earthquake exposure is a strong risk factor for PTSD, whereas being left behind is a strong risk factor for depression.

Formononetin protects against balloon injury­induced neointima formation in rats by regulating proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells via the TGF­ß1/Smad3 signaling pathway.

The present study investigated the effects of formononetin (FMN) against balloon injury­induced neointima formation in vivo and platelet­derived growth factor (PDGF)­BB­induced proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) in vitro, and explored the underlying mechanisms. A rat model of carotid artery injury was established, in order to examine the effects of FMN on balloon injury­induced neointima formation. Histological observation of the carotid artery tissues was conducted by hematoxylin and eosin staining. VSMC proliferation during neointima formation was observed by proliferating cell nuclear antigen staining. Subsequently, rat aortic VSMCs were isolated, and the effects of FMN on PDGF­BB­induced VSMC proliferation and migration were determined using Cell Counting Kit­8 and Transwell/wound healing assays, respectively. Immunohistochemical and immunocytochemical staining was applied to measure the expression of transforming growth factor (TGF)­ß in carotid artery tissues and VSMCs, respectively. SMAD family member 3 (Smad3)/phosphorylated (p)­Smad3 expression was examined by western blotting. FMN treatment significantly inhibited the abnormal proliferation of smooth muscle cells in neointima, and alterations to the vascular structure were attenuated. In addition, pretreatment with FMN effectively inhibited the proliferation of PDGF­BB­stimulated VSMCs (P<0.05). FMN also reduced the number of cells that migrated to the lower surface of the Transwell chamber and decreased wound­healing percentage (P<0.05). The expression levels of TGF­ß were decreased by FMN treatment in vivo and in vitro, and Smad3/p­Smad3 expression was also markedly inhibited. In conclusion, FMN significantly protected against balloon injury­induced neointima formation in the carotid artery of a rat model; this effect may be associated with the regulation of VSMC proliferation and migration through altered TGF­ß1/Smad3 signaling.

Suicidality, posttraumatic stress, and depressive reactions after earthquake and maltreatment: A cross-sectional survey of a random sample of 6132 chinese children and adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Surviving an earthquake can greatly increase the risk of suicidality among children and adolescents, especially if they experience physical and emotional neglect or abuse within the family after the earthquake. How various types of childhood adversity affect the vulnerability of adolescents to suicidality after exposure to a natural disaster is not well understood. This study examined the relationships among different types of earthquake exposure, childhood trauma, psychopathology and suicidality. METHODS: Suicidality, the level of earthquake exposure, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and maltreatment, including physical and emotional abuse and neglect, were assessed in 6132 child and adolescent survivors randomly selected from three primary schools, five junior high schools, two senior high schools and one six-year high school in Baoxing, Lushan and Tianquan counties, which were the areas most severely affected by the 2013 Ya'an earthquake. RESULTS: The Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised (SBQ-R) scores were high, with 27.8% of the participants scoring at or above the cut-off score of 7. Multivariate regression showed that emotional abuse and depression experienced after the earthquake contributed to the suicide risk, whereas emotional neglect and PTSD made somewhat smaller contributions. The mediation analysis suggested that PTSD and depression symptoms partially mediated the association of suicidality with emotional neglect or abuse. The PTSD, depression and suicidality scores were generally higher for females than for males, whereas the depression and suicidality scores were higher for older than younger respondents. CONCLUSIONS: Our results highlight the need for the implementation of school-based, adolescent-centered suicide prevention programs in the long-term aftermath of exposure to traumatic events. Interventions may also need to be tailored to gender and developmental stage. Suicidality is independently associated with emotional abuse, neglect, depression and PTSD symptoms in this disaster-exposed young population. Longitudinal studies should explore whether depression and PTSD symptoms mediate the relationship between past emotional abuse or neglect and the current suicide risk.

A meta-analysis of add-on use of spironolactone in patients with resistant hypertension.

OBJECTIVE: The efficacy of add-on use of spironolactone in patients with resistant hypertension has been investigated in several small studies. We performed this meta-analysis evaluating the efficacy of add-on use of spironolactone in these patients. METHODS: We searched Pubmed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Central for all published studies evaluating add-on use of spironolactone in patients with resistant hypertension. Only randomized controlled trials determining antihypertensive effects of spironolactone were considered. RESULTS: The antihypertensive effects were assessed in 869 patients included in 4 trials with a mean follow-up of 12±3weeks. The reduction of systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) in patients treated with spironolactone was greater than placebo (weighted mean differences (WMD) for SBP -16.67mmHg (95% confidence interval (CI), -27.54, -5.80), p<0.01; WMD for DBP -6.11mmHg (95% CI, -9.34, -2.88), p<0.001), respectively. The rates of serious adverse effects or patient withdrawals from the trials tended to be higher in patients treated with spironolactone than placebo (WMD for odds ratio 2.11 (95% CI, 0.98, 4.53), p=0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis provides the evidence that add-on use of spironolactone in patients with resistant hypertension is effective in lowering SBP and DBP, suggesting an add-on use of spironolactone as fourth line therapy in patients with resistant hypertension.

Mental health problems among children and adolescents experiencing two major earthquakes in remote mountainous regions: A longitudinal study.

OBJECTIVE: Millions of children were exposed to major earthquake in China, with serious psychological and developmental consequences. To obtain accurate rate of post-disaster related disorder and identify predictors may help inform post-disaster rescue and rehabilitation efforts. The present longitudinal study explored correlations of demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of juvenile survivors of the Ya'an and Wenchuan earthquakes in China with their trajectories of post-disaster related disorder. METHODS: A total of 435 Chinese children and adolescents who survived the 2013 Ya'an earthquake were recruited from six primary, secondary and high schools in Baoxing County. All survivors were assessed at 12months after the disaster, when a trained psychiatrist assessed mental health problems in a face-to-face structured interview, and 153 survivors were followed up at 30months after the earthquake via telephone. RESULTS: The 12-month assessment indicated a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) prevalence of 43.9% as well as depression (20.9%) or the criteria for both PTSD and depression (18.2%) and the other disorder (0.9%). The 30-month assessment indicated that 15.7% of subjects met the criteria for PTSD, 21.6% met the criteria for depression. No subjects met the criteria for other affective or anxiety disorders. Significant predictors of PTSD and depression were death in the family, previous earthquake experience, a poor parent-child relationship and economic pressure or poverty. LIMITATIONS: Clinical interview face to face is quite different from via telephone and the attrition rate in the longitudinal cohort is high, which would directly affect our results of the assessment. CONCLUSIONS: PTSD and depression may be as prevalent and persistent in disaster victims in China as elsewhere, and high co-comorbidities remain poorly understood. Although many adolescents recover over time, some exhibit chronic, delayed-onset PTSD and depression, especially those with poor relationships with their parents or those living in precarious economic conditions. Family-based therapy may be needed to support child and adolescent trauma survivors in order to prevent mental illness.