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Graves' disease is a common cause of hyperthyroidism. Treatment options for Graves' disease include antithyroid medication, surgery or radioactive iodine (I- 131) or RAI. This review will focus on the approach to RAI therapy; discussing dose selection, patient preparation, and consideration before and after administering RAI, examining aspects of pre-treatment with antithyroid medication as well as discussing possible adverse events including hypothyroidism and possible worsening of thyroid-associated opthalmopathy. Follow-up is lifelong with the aim of ensuring the patient remains euthyroid or on replacement therapy if there is evidence of hypothyroidism. While there are controversies in treatment of thyrotoxicosis with RAI, with appropriate patient selection and regular follow-up, radioiodine is a safe and effective modality in achieving high cure rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While disease surveillance for HIV/AIDS is now widely conducted in the United States, effective HIV prevention programs rely primarily on changing behavior; therefore, behavioral data are needed to inform these programs. To achieve the goal of reducing HIV infections in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in cooperation with state and local health departments, implemented the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System (NHBS) for injecting drug users (IDUs) in 25 selected metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) throughout the United States in 2005. The surveillance system used respondent-driven sampling (RDS), a modified chain-referral method, to recruit IDUs for a survey measuring HIV-associated drug use and sexual risk behavior. RDS can produce population estimates for specific risk behaviors and demographic characteristics. Formative assessment activities--primarily the collection of qualitative data--provided information to better understand the IDU population and implement the surveillance activities in each city. This is the first behavioral surveillance system of its kind in the U.S. that will provide local and national data on risk for HIV and other blood-borne and sexually transmitted infections among IDUs for monitoring changes in the epidemic and prevention programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many HIV-1-seropositive women in Africa who are offered antiretroviral prophylaxis to prevent mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV do not begin interventions. Research on barriers to participation has not addressed the possible effects of women's sociocultural and economic circumstances. We examined these factors at an MTCT prevention programme in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire. We interviewed two groups of women after they had received HIV-positive test results and had been invited by the programme staff to return for monthly follow-up visits before beginning short-course zidovudine prophylaxis. Participants (n = 30) completed follow-up visits and prophylaxis. Non-participants (n = 27) refused or discontinued follow-up visits and did not begin zidovudine. Fewer non-participants had been born in Cote d'Ivoire (67% vs. 97%) or were Ivorian nationals (48% vs. 77%); they had lived in the country for less time (21 vs. 26 median years). They were less likely to be French-literate (37% vs. 77%), and more of them reported having had Koranic education only (18% vs. 0). They more often reported miscarriages, stillbirths, or infant deaths (69% vs. 33%), and had partners with low-ranked jobs (63% vs. 30%). Our findings suggest that the non-participants were more marginal socioculturally and economically in Ivorian society than participants. Greater attention to mitigating the effects of broader structural factors on women's participation in interventions may increase the effectiveness of MTCT prevention in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Constructing scientifically sound samples of hard-to-reach populations, also known as hidden populations, is a challenge for many research projects. Traditional sample survey methods, such as random sampling from telephone or mailing lists, can yield low numbers of eligible respondents while non-probability sampling introduces unknown biases. The authors describe a venue-based application of time-space sampling (TSS) that addresses the challenges of accessing hard-to-reach populations. The method entails identifying days and times when the target population gathers at specific venues, constructing a sampling frame of venue, day-time units (VDTs), randomly selecting and visiting VDTs (the primary sampling units), and systematically intercepting and collecting information from consenting members of the target population. This allows researchers to construct a sample with known properties, make statistical inference to the larger population of venue visitors, and theorize about the introduction of biases that may limit generalization of results to the target population. The authors describe their use of TSS in the ongoing Community Intervention Trial for Youth (CITY) project to generate a systematic sample of young men who have sex with men. The project is an ongoing community level HIV prevention intervention trial funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The TSS method is reproducible and can be adapted to hard-to-reach populations in other situations, environments, and cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Many studies measure sex behavior to determine the efficacy of sexually transmitted disease (STD)/HIV prevention interventions.Goal: To determine how well measured behavior reflects STD incidence.Study Design: Data from a trial (Project RESPECT) were analyzed to compare behavior and incidence of STD (gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, HIV) during two 6-month intervals.Results: A total of 2879 persons had 5062 six-monthly STD exams and interviews; 8.9% had a new STD in 6 months. Incidence was associated with demographic factors but only slightly associated with number of partners and number of unprotected sex acts with occasional partners. Many behaviors had paradoxical associations with STD incidence. After combining behavior variables to compare persons with highest and lowest risk behaviors, the STD incidence ratio was only 1.7.Conclusion: Behavioral interventions have prevented STD. We found people tend to have safe sex with risky partners and risky sex with safe partners. Therefore, it is difficult to extrapolate the disease prevention efficacy of an intervention from a measured effect on behavior alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To establish an animal model of oral squamous cell carcinoma invading the mandible through multi-sample experiments that verified the stability, repeatability, tumorigenicity and mandible destruction rate of the model., Methods: Oral squamous cell carcinoma cell suspension was injected into the outer side of the mandible through the anterior edge of the masseter muscle of naked mice to observe the tumourforming process. Then, the anatomical, histological and imaging examinations were carried out to determine whether the tumour had invaded the mandible. By comparing the tumour growth of multiple groups of various squamous cell carcinoma cells (CAL27, HN6 and HN30 cells), the changes in body weight and characteristics of tumour formation were compared, and the experience was summarised to further verify the stability, repeatability, tumour formation rate and arch damage rate of the model., Results: The subsequent specimens of tumour-bearing nude mice were validated once the model had been established. In vitro, tumour tissue wrapped around the mandible's tumour-bearing side, and the local texture was tough with no resistance to acupuncture. Haematoxylin and eosin staining revealed that squamous cells were infiltrating the mandible in both the horizontal and sagittal planes. Microcomputed tomography results showed that the mandible on the tumour-bearing side displayed obvious erosion damage. Cell lines with various passage rates clearly had diverse tumour-bearing life cycles., Conclusion: This study successfully established an animal model of oral squamous cell carcinoma invasion of the mandible. The model has excellent biological stability, repeatability, tumorigenesis rate and mandible destruction rate.

The relationship between PM 2.5 and metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes (T2D), has become increasingly prominent, but the molecular mechanism needs to be further clarified. To help understand the mechanistic association between PM 2.5 exposure and human health, we investigated short-term PM 2.5 exposure trajectory-related multi-omics characteristics from stool metagenome and metabolome and serum proteome and metabolome in a cohort of 3267 participants (age: 64.4 ± 5.8 years) living in Southern China. And then integrate these features to examine their relationship with T2D. We observed significant differences in overall structure in each omics and 193 individual biomarkers between the high- and low-PM 2.5 groups. PM 2.5 -related features included the disturbance of microbes (carbohydrate metabolism-associated Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron), gut metabolites of amino acids and carbohydrates, serum biomarkers related to lipid metabolism and reducing n-3 fatty acids. The patterns of overall network relationships among the biomarkers differed between T2D and normal participants. The subnetwork membership centered on the hub nodes (fecal rhamnose and glycylproline, serum hippuric acid, and protein TB182) related to high-PM 2.5 , which well predicted higher T2D prevalence and incidence and a higher level of fasting blood glucose, HbA1C, insulin, and HOMA-IR. Our findings underline crucial PM 2.5 -related multi-omics biomarkers linking PM 2.5 exposure and T2D in humans., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Salpratone A ( 1 ), a novel abietane diterpenoid containing a unique cis -fused A/B ring, was isolated from Salvia prattii . Bioactivity studies showed that 1 has potent activity in inhibiting platelet aggregation induced by multiple agonists as well as antithrombotic efficacy in the FeCl 3 -induced rat in vivo thrombosis model. Furthermore, a bioinspired synthesis of 1 from the abundant natural product ferruginol was achieved in 6 steps with a 22% overall yield. The key steps include a stereoselective allyl oxidation and a subsequent regioselective Meinwald rearrangement.

Background: Breast-conserving surgery combined with oncoplastic breast surgery has become the standard surgical treatment for early breast cancer., Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the safety and efficacy of the thoracodorsal artery perforator flap (TDAPF) in breast-conserving reconstruction of T2 breast cancer., Methods: Thirty patients with T2 breast cancer admitted to our hospital from January 2019 to December 2020 were enrolled to receive pedicled TDAPF for repairing breast defects after breast-conserving surgery. Intraoperative conditions, postoperative complications, and shape satisfaction after breast reconstruction were recorded., Results: The operation was successfully completed in all 30 patients, with an operation time of 177.77 ± 24.39 min, bleeding of 44.17 ± 7.67 mL, and length of hospital stay of 5.23 ± .97 d. There was no deformity or seroma at the donor site. Breast shape recovered well after operation. After operation, one patient had fat liquefaction in the recipient site, which healed well after wound treatment. The incidence of postoperative complications was 3.33%. Postoperative follow-up lasted 16-28 months, with a median of 22 months. The Breast-Q score for breast satisfaction was 61.83 ± 12.87 at 6 months after operation, compared to 62.07 ± 11.78 before operation ( P > .05)., Conclusions: TDAPF, featuring a high survival rate, moderate flap area, fewer postoperative complications, and high satisfaction with breast shape after operation. For east asian women with moderate breast size, TDAPF is a safe, effective choice for repairing defects in breast-conserving surgery for T2 breast cancer., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Jaw cysts commonly affect the oral and maxillofacial region, involving adjacent tooth roots. The management of these teeth, particularly regarding root canal therapy and apicoectomy, lacks consensus. This study introduces a novel treatment concept and refined surgical approach to preserve pulp viability in teeth involved in jaw cysts. The objective was to investigate the effectiveness and potential benefits of this approach over a 36-month follow-up period. A conservative management approach prioritized vitality preservation, reserving root canal treatment and apicectomy for cases with post-operative discomfort. A comprehensive follow-up of 108 involved teeth from 36 jaw cyst cases treated with the modified method was conducted. Clinical observation, X-ray imaging, cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), and pulp vitality testing assessed changes in cyst size, tooth color, pulp vitality, root structure, and surrounding alveolar bone. After 36 months, our modified surgical approach successfully preserved tooth vitality in 84 involved teeth. Adverse symptoms in 19 teeth, such as redness, swelling, fistula, and pain, resolved with postoperative root canal therapy. Follow-up was lost for five teeth in two cases. No cyst recurrences were observed, and in 34 cases, the bone cavity gradually disappeared, restoring normal bone density during long-term follow-up. Our modified surgical method effectively preserves tooth vitality in jaw cysts. This innovative approach has the potential to improve the management of teeth involved in jaw cysts., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the expression of acute phase proteins and plasma cytokines in cats with various tumor types and varying metastatic statuses., Animals: 5 clinically healthy cats and 22 cats with neoplastic disease that underwent CT imaging before treatment were enrolled. Patients were grouped based on their tumor types and metastatic status., Methods: Blood samples were collected from all cats for general blood analyses before they underwent CT imaging. The remaining plasma sample was frozen for subsequent alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (AGP), serum amyloid A (SAA), and feline cytokine panel measurements. These results were compared with those of healthy cats as well as between metastatic status and tumor types., Results: Only 4 cats (18%) exhibited elevated SAA levels, whereas 16 (73%) showed elevated AGP levels. AGP was significantly increased in cats with tumors (P = .016), while SAA was not. Only IL-8 showed a significant difference (P = .002) between cats with primary tumors and those with radiologically suspected tumor metastasis., Clinical Relevance: While AGP is a more prominent biomarker than SAA in cats with tumors, a significant elevation of AGP and SAA levels in association with metastasis and specific tumor types could not be identified. Alternatively, further investigation is warranted to evaluate the potential significance of IL-8 in tumor progression and metastasis.

Eleven new abietane-type diterpene lactones, salpratlactones D-N (1-11), including five 11,12-seco-11-nor-abietane diterpenes (1-5), four 11,12-seco-abietane diterpenes (6-9), two 20(10 → 5)-abeo-4,5;11,12-bis-seco-abietane diterpenes (10-11), and two known analogues (12-13), were characterized from Salvia prattii. Notably, compounds 1-3 were characterized by a unique linear 6/6/6 tricyclic skeleton. The structures were established by spectroscopic data interpretation, calculated NMR-DP4+ and electronic circular dichroism analysis, as well as single-crystal X-ray diffraction. A bioactivity study showed that 1, 2, 5, 11, and 12 can potently inhibit platelet aggregation induced by arachidonic acid (AA), with IC 50 values of 5.66-16.10 μg/ml, stronger than aspirin. In addition, the lactate dehydrogenase assay showed that they had no effect on platelet integrity. Structurally, the same 1,2-benzopyrone fragments of 1, 2, and 5 should be the important pharmacophore for antiplatelet activity., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the safety and feasibility of intranasal administration of dexmedetomidine as a premedication for preventing hypotension and hypothermia in canine patients undergoing MRI examinations., Animals: Dogs undergoing MRI examinations for neurological disorders were enrolled in this study. The dogs were randomly assigned: 15 to the N-Dex group (without premedication) and 13 to the Dex group (125 μg/m2 of dexmedetomidine, intranasally, as a premedication)., Methods: During the examination, pulse rate, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and mean arterial blood pressure were recorded every 5 minutes for the first 30 minutes. Body temperature was measured before and after the examination. Any adverse events during the procedure were documented., Results: Significant changes in pulse rate during the examination were not distinguishable. Although blood pressure and body temperature decreased in both groups under anesthesia, dogs in the Dex group had a significantly smaller drop in blood pressure and body temperature and fewer hypotension events than those in the N-Dex group MRI examinations of 1 hour's duration. Two dogs in the Dex group exhibited bradycardia at 45 and 60 minutes of MRI examination, which resolved after receiving atipamezole., Clinical Relevance: Our results indicate that intranasal administration of 125 μg/m2 of dexmedetomidine as premedication is safe and can potentially mitigate hypothermia and hypotension in dogs with neurological disorders during MRI examinations.

Aims: We aimed to identify the neurotrophic activities of apigenin (4',5,7-trihydroxyflavone) via its coordination with brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BNDF) and an elevated signaling of tyrosine kinase receptor B (Trk B receptor)., Methods: The direct binding of apigenin to BDNF was validated by ultrafiltration and biacore assay. Neurogenesis, triggered by apigenin and/or BDNF, was determined in cultured SH-SY5Y cells and rat cortical neurons. The amyloid-beta (Aβ) 25-35 -induced cellular stress was revealed by propidium iodide staining, mitochondrial membrane potential, bioenergetic analysis, and formation of reactive oxygen species levels. Activation of Trk B signaling was tested by western blotting., Results: Apigenin and BDNF synergistically maintained the cell viability and promoted neurite outgrowth of cultured neurons. In addition, the BDNF-induced neurogenesis of cultured neurons was markedly potentiated by applied apigenin, including the induced expressions of neurofilaments, PSD-95 and synaptotagmin. Moreover, the synergy of apigenin and BDNF alleviated the (Aβ) 25-35 -induced cytotoxicity and mitochondrial dysfunction. The synergy could be accounted by phosphorylation of Trk B receptor, and which was fully blocked by a Trk inhibitor K252a., Conclusion: Apigenin potentiates the neurotrophic activities of BDNF through direct binding, which may serve as a possible treatment for its curative efficiency in neurodegenerative diseases and depression., (© 2023 The Authors. CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

To handle imbalanced datasets in machine learning or deep learning models, some studies suggest sampling techniques to generate virtual examples of minority classes to improve the models' prediction accuracy. However, for kernel-based support vector machines (SVM), some sampling methods suggest generating synthetic examples in an original data space rather than in a high-dimensional feature space. This may be ineffective in improving SVM classification for imbalanced datasets. To address this problem, we propose a novel hybrid sampling technique termed modified mega-trend-diffusion-extreme learning machine (MMTD-ELM) to effectively move the SVM decision boundary toward a region of the majority class. By this movement, the prediction of SVM for minority class examples can be improved. The proposed method combines α-cut fuzzy number method for screening representative examples of majority class and MMTD method for creating new examples of the minority class. Furthermore, we construct a bagging ELM model to monitor the similarity between new examples and original data. In this paper, four datasets are used to test the efficiency of the proposed MMTD-ELM method in imbalanced data prediction. Additionally, we deployed two SVM models to compare prediction performance of the proposed MMTD-ELM method with three state-of-the-art sampling techniques in terms of geometric mean (G-mean), F-measure (F1), index of balanced accuracy (IBA) and area under curve (AUC) metrics. Furthermore, paired t-test is used to elucidate whether the suggested method has statistically significant differences from the other sampling techniques in terms of the four evaluation metrics. The experimental results demonstrated that the proposed method achieves the best average values in terms of G-mean, F1, IBA and AUC. Overall, the suggested MMTD-ELM method outperforms these sampling methods for imbalanced datasets.

Background: Breast fibroadenoma is the most common benign breast tumour. This study aimed to investigate the advantages and disadvantages of endoscopic-assisted resection via a gas-less transaxillary single-port approach for breast fibroadenoma in adolescent patients, compared with a traditional approach., Methods: The clinical data of 83 patients with breast fibroadenoma treated in our hospital from October 2019 to October 2021 were collected for retrospective analysis. These patients were divided into an endoscopic-assisted surgery (ES) group (n = 39) and a traditional open surgery (OS) group (n = 44) according to the surgical approach. The operative time, intraoperative blood loss, incision length, postoperative complications, and patient satisfaction were compared between the two groups., Results: The surgical cost was (5.1 ± 0.6) thousand Yuan [(0.7 ± 0.1) thousand US dollars] in the ES group and (3.5 ± 2.7) thousand Yuan [(0.5 ± 0.4) thousand US dollars] in the OS group, showing a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in surgical time, intraoperative blood loss, incision length, or the rate of postoperative complications between the two groups. Stratified analysis revealed that the ES group had a significantly shorter operative time [(57.00 ± 10.26) min vs. (78.27 ± 7.63)] (p < 0.001), a smaller incision length [(3.73 ± 0.34) cm vs. (4.42 ± 0.44) cm] (p < 0.001), and a lower complication incidence rate (11.1% vs. 63.6) (p = 0.011) than the OS group in the cases with a nodule number ≥ 3. The satisfaction score using the BREAST-Q scale indicated that psychosocial well-being and patient satisfaction with the breast in the ES group were significantly superior to those in the OS group [(91.18 ± 3.12) points vs. (87.00 ± 4.45) points and (91.03 ± 6.80) points vs. (84.45 ± 6.06) points, respectively] (p < 0.001)., Conclusion: ES is a safe and effective method for the treatment of fibroadenoma. In patients with multiple fibroadenomas (≥ 3 tumours), ES has a shorter operative time and fewer postoperative complications. ES demonstrates a significant, prominent advantage in cosmetic appearance. However, it should be noted that ES is associated with higher costs than OS., (© 2023. BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature.)

Purpose: The early integration of palliative care for terminally ill cancer patients improves quality of life. We have developed a new nurse-led consultation model for use in a palliative care consultation service (PCCS) to initiate early palliative care for cancer patients., Methods: In this 11-year observational study, data were collected from the Hospice-Palliative Clinical Database (HPCD) of Taichung Veterans General Hospital (TCVGH). Terminally ill cancer patients who had received PCCS during the years 2011 to 2021 were enrolled. Trend analysis was performed in order to evaluate differences in outcomes seen within the categories of either a nurse-led consultation model or ordinary consultation model throughout the study period. Analysis included studying the duration of PCCS and DNR declaration, as well as awareness of disease by both patients and families before and after PCCS., Results: In total, 6923 cancer patients with an average age of 64.1 years received PCCS from 2011 to 2021, with the average duration of PCCS being 11.1 days. Three thousand four hundred twenty-one patients (49.4%) received both a nurse consultation and doctor consultation during PCCS. Being admitted to the Department of Hematology, a longer duration of hospitalization, a DNR declaration after PCCS, and having had a PCCS consultation by a nurse only or both with a nurse and a doctor were significant determinants of a PCCS duration of more than 7 days., Conclusion: This 11-year observational study shows that the number of terminal cancer patients receiving a novel nurse-led consultation during PCCS has increased significantly during the past decade, while a nurse-led consultation model during PCCS was effective in improving the duration of PCCS among terminally ill cancer patients., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Periodontal disease is the most common oral disease seen in dogs, and its routine treatment usually involves dental scaling. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy may enhance the effectiveness of treatment of periodontal disease, delay the progression of the disease and decrease the time under anesthesia. However, its application in dogs is rarely discussed. The objective of this study was to evaluate the benefits of activated PRP for treatment of periodontal disease in dogs. 43 mL of whole blood was collected from six adult dogs and PRP extracted using the double centrifugation tube method. Subsequently, the PRP was activated using calcium chloride (A-PRP). Significantly elevated concentrations of PDGF-BB (7000.28 pg/mL), TGF-β (378.98 pg/mL), and VEGF (7.14 pg/mL) were detected in the A-PRP. Additionally, three of the dogs with stage 2-3 periodontal disease were enrolled in the clinical trial. Periodontal pocket depth, stage of periodontal disease, gingival index, horizontal bone loss, and alveolar bone density involving the maxillary third and fourth premolar and first molar teeth (107, 108, 109, 207, 208, and 209) were evaluated. Teeth were treated by dental scaling alone (control group) or by dental scaling followed by submucosal injection of 0.1 mL A-PRP per site. After 56 days, significant improvement in periodontal pocket depth, stage of periodontal disease, gingival index, and horizontal bone loss was observed in dogs injected with A-PRP. The high concentrations of growth factors in A-PRP likely contributed to this effect. The use of submucosal injections of A-PRP to treat canine stage 2-3 periodontal disease appears safe and effective for clinical practice.

Canine stifle joint osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by damage and degeneration of the articular cartilage and subchondral bone, bony hypertrophy at the margins, and synovial joint membrane changes. Non-invasive imaging modalities, such as digital radiography (DR), computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), can be used to describe these changes. However, the value of MRI in diagnosing spontaneous canine OA and the comparison of different imaging modalities have seldom been addressed. This study compared multiple noninvasive imaging modalities in canine spontaneous stifle OA cases. Four client-owned dogs with five spontaneously affected OA stifle joints were recruited and underwent DR, CT, and MRI. Information on osteophytes/enthesophytes, ligament/tendon lesions, synovial effusion and membrane thickening, subchondral bone lesions, and meniscal and cartilage lesions were scored and compared. The results showed that MRI provides the most comprehensive and superior lesion detection sensitivity for ligament, meniscus, cartilage, and synovial effusions. DR provides adequate bony structure information, while CT provides the most delicate images of bony structure lesions. These imaging findings may provide further understanding of the disease and help clinicians draft a more precise treatment plan.

Introduction: Using mammographic density as a significant biomarker for predicting prognosis in adjuvant hormone therapy patients is controversial due to the conflicting results of recent studies. This study aimed to evaluate hormone therapy-induced mammographic density reduction and its association with prognosis in Taiwanese patients ., Methods: In this retrospective study, 1941 patients with breast cancer were screened, and 399 patients with estrogen receptor - positive breast cancer who received adjuvant hormone therapy were enrolled. The mammographic density was measured using a fully automatic estimation procedure based on full-field digital mammography. The prognosis included relapse and metastasis during treatment follow-up. The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards model were used for disease-free survival analysis., Results: A mammographic density reduction rate >20.8%, measured preoperatively and after receiving hormone therapy from 12-18 months, was a significant threshold for predicting prognosis in patients with breast cancer. The disease-free survival rate was significantly higher in patients whose mammographic density reduction rate was >20.8% (P = .048)., Conclusion: This study's findings could help estimate the prognosis for patients with breast cancer and may improve the quality of adjuvant hormone therapy after enlarging the study cohort in the future.

Background: The breasts of Oriental women are characterized by an obvious scar constitution and a relatively small mammary gland volume. Thus, plastic surgery, which is now popular in the West, is not suitable for most patients in China, and Chinese surgeons are searching for symmetrical plastic surgery options that are suitable for patients with breast tumors, unilateral breast implants and an obvious scar constitution., Methods: Between January 2016 and December 2019, 15 patients underwent contralateral breast overlapped reconstruction (COBOR) at the Affiliated Hospital of Putian University. We assessed their clinicopathological data, complications, cosmetic satisfaction and quality of life., Results: The mean age was 41.6 years (range, 31-54 years), the average BMI was 24.36 kg/m2 (range, 20.3-28.4 kg/m2), the most common tumor location was the upper outer quadrant (n = 9), the mean preoperative tumor size was 21.11 mm (range, 7-42 mm), and 4 patients underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The cancer grades and histological types were as follows: G3 nonspecial type (NST), 3 cases; G2 NST, 6 cases; G2 lobular carcinoma, 1 case; and ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), 5 cases. The nipple margin was negative in all of these cases. Among them, there was 1 case of poor wound healing caused by subcutaneous fat liquefaction around the incision. In another case, partial nipple necrosis occurred on the affected side due to an insufficient nipple blood supply after the operation and healed after debridement and dressing changes. There were no cases of tumor recurrence during the mean follow-up of 22.53 months (range, 11-47 months). The BREAST-Q scores showed that COBOR provided good patient satisfaction., Conclusion: For Oriental patients with small breasts, COBOR, which results in fewer scars, good symmetry and good satisfaction, is an effective and safe surgical method. However, larger studies with longer follow-up periods are needed to obtain more reliable postoperative results., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Asian Surgical Association and Taiwan Robotic Surgery Association. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To analyze the effect of selective bronchial occlusion (SBO) in the treatment of intractable pneumothorax. Methods: A total of 86 patients with refractory pneumothorax treated with SBO in the Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2021 were included in this study. The basic information, diagnosis and treatment of the patients were collected and analyzed based on their inpatient records. Results: The age of the subjects was (62±11) years old, and 83 cases (96.5%) were male. The first time SBO cure rate was 30.2% (26/86). The effective rate of the first time SBO treatment was 38.4% (33/86), and the final cure rate of SBO was 59.3% (51/86). The total cure rate of SBO combined with other therapies was 73.3% (63/86). The median time [ M ( Q 1 , Q 3 )] from the first plugging to the complete cessation of air leakage in SBO cured patients was 6.5 (3, 7) days, which was shorter than that in the final extubation patients after SBO [11 (7, 19) days] ( H =30.24, P <0.001) . The median [ M ( Q 1 , Q 3 )] length of hospital stay of the first SBO cured patients was 19 (14, 25) days, which was shorter than that of all patients [28 (19, 37) days] ( H =12.89, P =0.002). The median [ M ( Q 1 , Q 3 )] hospitalization expenses of patients with first SBO cure, effective SBO treatment and ineffective SBO treatment were 23 187 (18 906, 27 798), 41 580 (29 388, 50 762) and 38 462 (27 542, 51 720) yuan, respectively, and the difference was statistically significant ( H =18.58 , P <0.001). The incidence of complications after SBO was 7.59% (11/145). Conclusion: SBO has good efficacy and relative high safety in the treatment of intractable pneumothorax.

Influences of multiple environmental factors on water quality patterns is less studied in large rivers. Landscape analysis, multiple statistical methods, and the water quality index (WQI) were used to detect water quality patterns and influencing factors in China's largest river, the Yangtze River. Compared with the dry season, the wet season had significantly higher total phosphorus (TP), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS), and turbidity (TUR). The WQI indicated "Moderate" and "Good" water quality in the wet and dry seasons, respectively. Compared with other sites, the upper reach sites that immediately downstream of the Three Gorges Dam had lower TP, TN, TSS and TUR in both seasons, and had lower and higher water temperature in the wet and dry seasons, respectively. Water quality patterns were mainly driven by heterogeneity in land use (i.e., wetland, cropland, and urban land), hydrology (i.e., water flow, water level), and climate (i.e., rainfall, air temperature). Water quality in the wet season was primarily driven by land use while the joint effect of land use and hydrology primarily drove in the dry season. Decision-makers and regulators of large river basin management may need to develop programs that consider influences from both human and natural drivers for water quality conservation., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

We investigate the statistical properties of fluctuations in active systems that are governed by nonsymmetric responses. Both an underdamped Langevin system with an odd resistance tensor and an overdamped Langevin system with an odd elastic tensor are studied. For a system in thermal equilibrium, the time-correlation functions should satisfy time-reversal symmetry and the antisymmetric parts of the correlation functions should vanish. For the odd Langevin systems, however, we find that the antisymmetric parts of the time-correlation functions can exist and that they are proportional to either the odd resistance coefficient or the odd elastic constant. This means that the time-reversal invariance of the correlation functions is broken due to the presence of odd responses in active systems. Using the short-time asymptotic expressions of the time-correlation functions, one can estimate an odd elastic constant of an active material such as an enzyme or a motor protein.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a prevalent and complex neurodevelopmental disorder which has strong genetic basis. Despite the rapidly rising incidence of autism, little is known about its aetiology, risk factors, and disease progression. There are currently neither validated biomarkers for diagnostic screening nor specific medication for autism. Over the last two decades, there have been remarkable advances in genetics, with hundreds of genes identified and validated as being associated with a high risk for autism. The convergence of neuroscience methods is becoming more widely recognized for its significance in elucidating the pathological mechanisms of autism. Efforts have been devoted to exploring the behavioural functions, key pathological mechanisms and potential treatments of autism. Here, as we highlight in this review, emerging evidence shows that signal transduction molecular events are involved in pathological processes such as transcription, translation, synaptic transmission, epigenetics and immunoinflammatory responses. This involvement has important implications for the discovery of precise molecular targets for autism. Moreover, we review recent insights into the mechanisms and clinical implications of signal transduction in autism from molecular, cellular, neural circuit, and neurobehavioural aspects. Finally, the challenges and future perspectives are discussed with regard to novel strategies predicated on the biological features of autism., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Colonic intramural hematoma is a rare condition in humans and companion animals. Its clinical presentation in cats has not previously been reported. An 8-year-old male American shorthair cat presented with acute onset of constipation and anorexia for 3 days. Laboratory examination indicated mild elevation of alanine aminotransferase, globulin, and total protein levels. Complete blood count was normal. Radiographs revealed a soft tissue opacity mass located caudodorsally to the urinary bladder, causing narrowing of the descending colonic lumen. Sonography showed a heteroechogenic intraluminal mass containing liquefied content between the submucosal and muscular layers of the descending colon. On computed tomographic images, the mass contained two different attenuated contents with an interface. Colonoscopy was then performed for intestinal biopsy, and the contents observed in the intraluminal mass were drained via surgical evacuation and considered as blood clots. Supportive medical treatment, including antibiotics and fecal softener, was administered, and the clinical signs resolved uneventfully. Mild chronic proctitis without apparent malignancy was confirmed histopathologically, and no recurrence was observed after more than 14 months, and thus a colonic intramural hematoma was presumptively diagnosed. The information provided by multimodal imaging of the mass was essential for the diagnosis and determination of the treatment in this case., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Hsu, Lin, Chung, Chiang, Chiu and Huang.)

Dermatophytes are the group of keratinophilic fungi that cause superficial cutaneous infection, which traditionally belong to the genera Trichophyton , Microsporum , and Epidermophyton . Dermatophyte infection is not only a threat to the health of small animals, but also an important zoonotic and public health issue because of the potential transmission from animals to humans. Rabbit dermatophytosis is often clinically identified; however, limited information was found in Asia. The aims of this study are to investigate the prevalence and to evaluate the risk factors of dermatophytosis in pet rabbits in Northern Taiwan. Between March 2016 and October 2018, dander samples of pet rabbits were collected for fungal infection examination by Wood's lamp, microscopic examination (KOH preparation), fungal culture, and PCR assay (molecular identification). Z test and Fisher's exact test were performed to evaluate the potential risk factors, and logistic regression analysis was then performed to build the model of risk factors related to dermatophyte infection. Of the collected 250 dander samples of pet rabbits, 29 (11.6%) samples were positive for dermatophytes by molecular identification. In those samples, 28 samples were identified as the T. mentagrophytes complex and 1 sample was identified as M. canis . Based on the results of the Firth's bias reduction logistic analyses, animal source (rabbits purchased from pet shops) and number of rearing rabbits (three rabbits or more) were shown as the main risks for dermatophyte infection in the pet rabbits in Taiwan. The results of the present study elucidate the prevalence of rabbit dermatophyte infection, pathogens, and risk factors in Taiwan, and provide an important reference for the prevention and control of rabbit dermatophytosis.

In collaboration with the American College of Veterinary Pathologists.

In the medical field, researchers are often unable to obtain the sufficient samples in a short period of time necessary to build a stable data-driven forecasting model used to classify a new disease. To address the problem of small data learning, many studies have demonstrated that generating virtual samples intended to augment the amount of training data is an effective approach, as it helps to improve forecasting models with small datasets. One of the most popular methods used in these studies is the mega-trend-diffusion (MTD) technique, which is widely used in various fields. The effectiveness of the MTD technique depends on the degree of data diffusion. However, data diffusion is seriously affected by extreme values. In addition, the MTD method only considers data fitted using a unimodal triangular membership function. However, in fact, data may come from multiple distributions in the real world. Therefore, considering the fact that data comes from multi-distributions, in this paper, a distance-based mega-trend-diffusion (DB-MTD) technique is proposed to appropriately estimate the degree of data diffusion with less impacts from extreme values. In the proposed method, it is assumed that the data is fitted by the triangular and trapezoidal membership functions to generate virtual samples. In addition, a possibility evaluation mechanism is proposed to measure the applicability of the virtual samples. In our experiment, two bladder cancer datasets are used to verify the effectiveness of the proposed DB-MTD method. The experimental results demonstrated that the proposed method outperforms other VSG techniques in classification and regression items for small bladder cancer datasets.

Objectives: Evidence on serum arsenic and oral cancer risk was limited. We aimed to evaluate the association between serum arsenic and the risk of oral cancer in a southeast China population., Methods: Serum arsenic was determined for 325 oral cancer patients and 648 controls using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Logistic regression and restricted cubic spline were analysed the association between serum arsenic level and oral cancer risk, and crude and adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were calculated. Factors adjusted for included age, gender, BMI, smoking, drinking, education, residence, marital status and dietary factors. Stratification analysis was further performed according to drinking, smoking and dietary characteristics., Results: Serum arsenic level was lower in the case group (P 50  = 19.2μg/L, IQR = 11.6 ~ 26.4μg/L) than in the control group (P 50  = 30.2 μg/L, IQR = 25.0 ~ 36.4 μg/L). An inverse but nonlinear association was observed between arsenic level and oral cancer risk by restricted cubic spline. These with moderate serum arsenic levels had a lower risk of oral cancer than those with low levels (OR = 0.11; 95%CI: 0.07-0.18), after adjusting for demographic and dietary intake factors. We also kept serum arsenic as a continuous variable in a regression model, where a similar inverse association between arsenic and oral cancer was observed, with OR = 0.86 (95%CI: 0.84-0.88). Stratification analysis revealed no significant multiplicative interactions between serum arsenic and smoking, drinking or dietary intake., Conclusion: Serum arsenic is inversely related to oral cancer risk. Relative to those with low levels of arsenic, people with moderate serum arsenic levels had a lower risk of oral cancer. If confirmed, serum arsenic level may be a useful predictive marker for oral cancer risk., (© 2021 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Due to the small differences in the chemical properties of facial ( fac ) and meridional ( mer ) stereoisomers, selective synthesis of one of the isomers is challenging, especially for lanthanide complexes. By using a flexible bidentate phosphine oxide ligand, we managed to isolate three stereoisomeric 2D and 3D coordination polymers, in which six-coordinate Dy(III) ions possess fac - or mer -Cl 3 O 3 coordination environments. Structural studies indicate that the stereochemistry differences result from their various supramolecular interactions ( e.g. , hydrogen bonding and π⋯π stacking). Magnetic property measurements reveal the different static and dynamic magnetic behaviours of the three stereoisomers. Ab initio CASSCF calculations were then performed which indicated that their distinct magnetic behaviours arise from their fac / mer configurations. Compared to fac -Dy(III), mer -Dy(III) possesses more axial ground-state KDs and higher first excited KDs.

Background: Gallbladder mucocele (GBM) is a common biliary disorder in dogs that can be categorized into 6 types, but the value of this classification scheme remains unknown. Cholecystectomy is associated with high death rates and warrants additional interrogation., Objectives: Investigate the clinical value of ultrasonographic diagnosis of type of GBM and identify prognostic factors in dogs with GBM undergoing cholecystectomy., Animals: Two hundred sixteen dogs., Methods: Retrospective cohort study. Dogs with GBM diagnosed from 2014 to 2019 at 6 veterinary referral hospitals in Asia. Ultrasonogram images were reviewed and a GBM type (ie, types I-VI) assigned., Results: Dogs with GBM type V as compared to I (OR, 8.6; 95% CI, 2.6-27.8; P < .001) and III (OR, 10.0; 95% CI, 2.5-40.8; P = .001), and dogs with type VI compared to I (OR, 10.5; 95% CI, 1.8-61.2; P = .009) and III (OR, 12.3; 95% CI, 1.8-83.9; P = .01) were more likely to exhibit signs of biliary tract disease. Independent predictors of death after cholecystectomy included age (OR, 2.81; 95% CI, 1.41-5.59; P = .003) and intraoperative systolic blood pressure (SBP) nadir. There was an interaction between SBP nadir and gallbladder rupture; SBP nadir in dogs with (OR, 0.92; 95% CI, 0.89-0.94; P < .001) and without (OR, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.82-0.93; P < .001) gallbladder rupture., Conclusion and Clinical Importance: Increasing developmental stage of GBM could be associated with an increased likelihood of biliary tract related clinical signs. Nadir SBP deserves further investigation as a prognostic or potentially modifiable variable, particularly in the presence of gallbladder rupture., (© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.)

Oversampling is the most popular data preprocessing technique. It makes traditional classifiers available for learning from imbalanced data. Through an overall review of oversampling techniques (oversamplers), we find that some of them can be regarded as danger-information-based oversamplers (DIBOs) that create samples near danger areas to make it possible for these positive examples to be correctly classified, and others are safe-information-based oversamplers (SIBOs) that create samples near safe areas to increase the correct rate of predicted positive values. However, DIBOs cause misclassification of too many negative examples in the overlapped areas, and SIBOs cause incorrect classification of too many borderline positive examples. Based on their advantages and disadvantages, a boundary-information-based oversampler (BIBO) is proposed. First, a concept of boundary information that considers safe information and dangerous information at the same time is proposed that makes created samples near decision boundaries. The experimental results show that DIBOs and BIBO perform better than SIBOs on the basic metrics of recall and negative class precision; SIBOs and BIBO perform better than DIBOs on the basic metrics for specificity and positive class precision, and BIBO is better than both of DIBOs and SIBOs in terms of integrated metrics.

The feasibility of using iron extracted from acid mine drainage (AMD) as Fenton's reagent for removal of organics pollutants from polymer and plastics manufacturing effluent was investigated in this study. AMD iron dose, H 2 O 2 concentration and pH were evaluated as the treatment factors for their effects on organics oxidation. Optimum treatment conditions were identified using response surface methodological analysis (RSM), and of the ranges of the treatment factors examined, an optimal treatment combination was found to be AMD iron concentration: 40 mg/L and H 2 O 2 : 500 mg/L at pH 2.2, organics removal efficiency as high as 98% for TOC removal was achieved. The removal efficiency increased with temperature up to 40°C and further temperature increases resulted in lower removal efficiencies. The organics oxidation was characterized well by investigating the kinetic order and the process is following the second-order reaction kinetics. The thermodynamic parameters showed that the oxidation reaction was endothermic and non-spontaneous in nature.

To search hair growth-promoting herbal extract, a screening platform of having HEK293T fibroblast being transfected with pTOPFLASH DNA construct was developed over a thousand of herbal extracts and phytochemicals were screened. One of the hits was ethanolic extract of Rhizoma Belamcandae, the rhizome of Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC. Tectoridin, an isoflavone from Rhizoma Belamcandae, was shown to be responsible for this activation of promoter construct, inducing the transcription of pTOPFLASH in the transfected fibroblasts in a dose-dependent manner. The blockage by DKK-1 suggested the action of tectoridin could be mediated by the Wnt receptor. The hair growth-promoting effects of tectoridin were illustrated in human follicular dermal papilla cells and mouse vibrissae organ cultures. In tectoridin-treated dermal papilla cultures, an activation of Wnt signaling was demonstrated by various indicative markers, including TCF/LEF1 transcriptional activity, nuclear translocation of β-catenin, expressions level of mRNAs encoding axin-related protein, (AXIN2), β-catenin, lymphoid enhancer-binding factor-1 (LEF-1), insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP). In addition, an increase of hair shaft elongation was observed in cultured mouse vibrissae upon the treatment of tectoridin. Tectoridin, as well as the herbal extract of Rhizoma Belamcandae, possesses hair promoting activity, which deserves further development.

Background: Paraquat (1,1-dimethyl-4,4-bipyridinium dichloride) is a toxic herbicide. Accidental ingestion of paraquat in animals and humans causes respiratory failure and death., Aim: To describe the radiographic features of confirmed paraquat intoxication in a group of dogs and determines whether any identified features can facilitate this diagnosis., Methods: Eleven dogs diagnosed with paraquat intoxication were selected from two institutions between November 2014 and August 2019 comprising five males (all intact) and six females (one intact and five spayed). The mean age was 3.9 ± 2.9 (SD) years and their mean weight was 11.6 ± 5.0 kg. The tentative diagnosis was confirmed through analysis of their urine samples using a colorimetric assay (paraquat concentation 0.39 μg/ml ranging from 0.19-0.65 μg/ml), and their clinical signs were reviewed. Thoracic radiographs were evaluated for the presence of pneumomediastinum, lung patterns (interstitial or alveolar) and their locations (caudodorsal, cranioventral, diffuse, or symmetrical), subcutaneous emphysema, pneumoretroperitoneum, and pneumothorax., Results: The most common clinical signs were dyspnea (11/11, 100%) and anorexia (9/11, 82%). Pneumomediastinum (10/11, 91%) and symmetrically increased lung opacity (7/11, 65%) were the most common radiographic features. Pneumothorax (3/11, 27%), pleural effusion (3/11, 27%), subcutaneous emphysema (2/11, 18%), and pneumoretroperitoneum (1/5, 20%) were the less common findings. None of the dogs survived., Conclusion: Pneumomediastinum and diffuse or symmetrical interstitial or alveolar lung patterns are the most common radiographic features in dogs with paraquat intoxication., Clinical Relevance: In countries where this herbicide is not banned, paraquat intoxication should be considered if dogs with no history of trauma present with pneumomediastinum.

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility of CT lymphangiography via intrametatarsal pad injection in cats with chylothorax., Animals: 7 client-owned cats., Procedures: This was a multicenter, retrospective, descriptive study. Medical records and imaging data from 4 veterinary hospitals were reviewed to identify cats with chylothorax that had undergone intrametatarsal pad injection via CT lymphangiography. In total, 7 client-owned cats were included in the study. Signalment, history, image findings, and follow-up data were recorded. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the success rate of thoracic duct (TD) enhancement and describe relevant clinical findings., Results: Enhancement of TDs was successful in 6 of the 7 cats within 5 to 15 minutes after initiating intrametatarsal pad injection under general anesthesia. Successful migration of contrast medium into the lymphatic vessels cranial to the popliteal lymph nodes was observed in all cats within 5 minutes after injection. The recommended dose of contrast medium to achieve TD enhancement was 1 mL/kg (0.5 mL/kg/pad; concentration, 350 mg of iodine/kg). Only 1 cat had mild swelling of the paws after the procedure, and it recovered quickly without pain medication; no cats experienced lameness. Similar to dogs and unlike in previously published reports, 72% of TD branches were located in the right hemithorax., Clinical Relevance: CT lymphangiography via intrametatarsal pad injection is a feasible and safe procedure for cats with chylothorax. This technique provides detailed information regarding the unique TD anatomy and cisterna chyli location. It also contributes to surgical planning.

Backgrounds: Early integration of palliative care for terminally ill non-cancer patients improves quality of life. However, there are scanty data on Palliative Care Consultation Service (PCCS) among non-cancer patients., Methods: In this 9-year observational study Data were collected from the Hospice-Palliative Clinical Database (HPCD) of Taichung Veterans General Hospital (TCVGH). Terminally ill non-cancer patients with 9 categories of diagnoses who received PCCS during 2011 to 2019 were enrolled. Trend analysis was performed to evaluate differences in categories of diagnosis throughout study period, duration of PCCS, patient outcomes, DNR declaration, awareness of disease by patients and families before and after PCCS., Results: In total, 536 non-cancer patients received PCCS from 2011 to 2019 with an average age of 70.7 years. The average duration of PCCS was 18.4 days. The distributions of age, gender, patient outcomes, family's awareness of disease before PCCS, and patient's awareness of disease after PCCS were significantly different among the diagnoses. Organic brain disease and Chronic kidney disease (CKD) were the most prevalent diagnoses in patients receiving PCCS in 2019. For DNR declaration, the percentage of patients signing DNR before PCCS remained high throughout the study period (92.8% in 2019). Patient outcomes varied according to the disease diagnoses., Conclusion: This 9-year observational study showed that the trend of PCCS among non-cancer patients had changed over the duration of the study. An increasing number of terminally ill non-cancer patients received PCCS during late life, thereby increasing the awareness of disease for both patients and families, which would tend to better prepare terminally ill patients for end-of-life as they may consider DNR consent. Early integration of PCCS into ordinary care for terminally non-cancer patients is essential for better quality of life., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

A 5-year-old, intact male Bengal cat weighing 5.2 kg was referred for the fixation failure of a right femoral fracture. Multiple surgical revisions failed, and atrophic non-union was diagnosed. The cat was then admitted for a final revision surgery using locking plate fixation in conjunction with rib and iliac crest autografts and recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 (rhBMP-2). The fracture site was debrided and stabilized before filling the defect with 1.8 cm of rib bone autograft. The residual space in the defect was then filled with an iliac crest autograft. Finally, a 3 ×5 cm absorbable collagen sponge soaked with 0.5 mL of 0.2 mg/mL rhBMP-2 solution was placed around the defect. No significant complications were noted postoperatively. Bone healing was noted 2 months postoperatively, and it continued for 12 months. Although mild lameness remained, the cat's ambulatory function and quality of life were good. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first case report of a clinical transplantation of a rib segment as an autograft in combination with rhBMP-2 in a cat with a large bone defect., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Chung, Lin and Teo.)

3-n-Butylphthalide (NBP) is a potent drug for the treatment of ischemic stroke. The aim of this study was to develop a simple and sensitive ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric (UPLC-MS/MS) method for the simultaneous determination of NBP and its circulating metabolite 10-hydroxy-NBP in rat plasma using senkyunolide I as the internal standard (IS). The analytes and IS were extracted from the plasma by ethyl acetate-ethyl ether (1:5, v/v) and then separated on an ACQUITY BEH C 18 column (2.1 × 50 mm, 1.7 μm). The mobile phase consisted of water containing 0.1% formic acid and acetonitrile containing 0.1% formic acid, which was delivered at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min with gradient elution. MS detection was achieved under selective reaction monitoring mode with precursor-to-product transitions at m/z 191.1 > 145.1 for NBP, m/z 207.1 > 171.1 for 10-hydroxy-NBP and m/z 207.1 > 161.1 for IS, respectively. The assay showed excellent linearity over the concentration range of 0.5-1000 ng/mL for both analytes, with correlation coefficient greater than 0.998. The other validation parameters were all within the required limits. The validated UPLC-MS/MS method has been further applied to the pharmacokinetic study of NBP and 10-hydroxy-NBP in rats after they were orally administered with NBP (30 mg/kg)., (© 2021 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)