Search

This study examined visual-tactile perceptual integration in deaf and normal hearing individuals. Participants were presented with photos of faces or pictures of an oval in either a visual mode or a visual-tactile mode in a recognition learning task. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded when participants recognized real faces and pictures of ovals in learning stage. Results from the parietal-occipital region showed that photos of faces accompanied with vibration elicited more positive-going ERP responses than photos of faces without vibration as indicated in the components of P1 and N170 in both deaf and hearing individuals. However, pictures of ovals accompanied with vibration produced more positive-going ERP responses than pictures of ovals without vibration in N170, which was only found in deaf individuals. A reversed pattern was shown in the temporal region indicating that real faces with vibration elicited less positive ERPs than photos of faces without vibration in both N170 and N300 for deaf, but such pattern did not appear in N170 and N300 for normal hearing. The results suggest that multisensory integration across the visual and tactile modality involves more fundamental perceptual regions than auditory regions. Moreover, auditory deprivation played an essential role at the perceptual encoding stage of the multisensory integration.

Objective To compare the efficacy of interventional closure versus drug therapy in treatment of patent foramen ovale (PFO) complicated with cryptogenic stroke (CS). Methods Clinical data of 167 patients with cerebral infarction or transient ischemic attack (TIA) complicated with PFO admitted in the Department of Neurology, General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University from January 2015 to August 2019 were collected and analyzed retrospectively. Among them, 80 (the surgery group) underwent PFO interventional closure and antithrombotic drug administration, and the other 87 (the drug group) only received drug therapy (oral antiplatelet aggregation or anticoagulant drugs). All the patients were followed up for an average of 31.6 (12~67) months. According to occurrence of endpoint events (recurrent cerebral infarction, recurrent TIA and death), the patients were divided into endpoint event group (n=24) and non-endpoint event group (n=143). Univariate analysis was used to compare the general data between the 2 groups of patients, and multivariate analysis was used to screen independent risk factors for the recurrence of the endpoint events. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was combined to evaluate the predictive values of obtained risk factors. Results The recurrence rate of the endpoint events was significantly lower in the surgery group than the drug group (Chi-square=10.959, P=0.001), and the patients with moderate and large shunts of PFO benefited more (Chi-square=10.26, P=0.001). Univariate analysis showed that the treatment method, follow-up time and history of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) had statistical significances in the occurrence of endpoint events (P < 0.05); Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the independent risk factors affecting the prognosis of patients were drug therapy (OR=8.958, P=0.001, 95%CI: 2.475~32.422), follow-up time (OR=1.041, P=0.013, 95%CI: 1.009~1.075) and a history of OSA (OR=8.117, P=0.001, 95%CI: 2.247~29.324). ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve was 0.813 (95%CI: 0.737 to 0.889, P < 0.001) for the model with drug therapy, follow-up time, and OSA history as variables. The area under the curve was 0.767 (95%CI: 0.677~0.856, P < 0.001) for the model with drug therapy and OSA history as variables, and 0.764 (95%CI: 0.674~0.853, P < 0.001) for the model with drug therapy and follow-up time as variables. Conclusion For patients with PFO complicated with CS, interventional closure can reduce the risk of recurrence of the end point events, and the patients with moderate or large number of shunts of PFO benefit more. Active OSA intervention have a certain preventive effect on the recurrence of the endpoint events.

Herein, we reported a sustainable and simple method involving electrochemical-catalyzed decarboxylative annulation and hydroaminomethylation of cyclic aldimines with N-arylglycines by switching the reaction solvents. When the reaction was carried out in MeCN/H2O or H2O, the resulting products included imidazolidine-fused sulfamidates and C4-aminomethylated cyclic aldimines, obtained in moderate to good yields, respectively. Mechanistically, a radical pathway was proposed to be involved in this approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cisplatin is widely employed in clinical oncology as an anticancer chemotherapy drug in clinical practice and is known for its severe ototoxic side effects. Prior research indicates that the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) plays a pivotal role in cisplatin's inner ear toxicity. Hesperidin is a flavanone glycoside extracted from citrus fruits that has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. Nonetheless, the specific pharmacological actions of hesperidin in alleviating cisplatin-induced ototoxicity remain elusive. The transcription factor nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a critical mediator of the cellular oxidative stress response, is influenced by hesperidin. Activation of Nrf2 was shown to have a protective effect against cisplatin-induced ototoxicity. The potential of hesperidin to stimulate Nrf2 in attenuating cisplatin's adverse effects on the inner ear warrants further investigation. This study employs both in vivo and in vitro models of cisplatin ototoxicity to explore this possibility. Our results reveal that hesperidin mitigates cisplatin-induced ototoxicity by activating the Nrf2/NQO1 pathway in sensory hair cells, thereby reducing ROS accumulation, preventing hair cell apoptosis, and alleviating hearing loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This letter to the editor discusses the case of a 58-year-old man with Acute Wernicke Encephalopathy who underwent PET/CT imaging. The imaging revealed increased uptake in the midbrain, medial thalamus, and periaqueductal gray matter, which contrasts with previously reported decreased uptake associated with Wernicke encephalopathy. Treatment with vitamin B1 injection resulted in clinical improvement, and follow-up imaging showed decreased FDG uptake in the cerebral lesion areas. The study suggests that PET/CT can reflect glucose metabolism changes in vital organs affected by thiamine deficiency in Acute Wernicke's encephalopathy. [Extracted from the article]