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HighlightsA noncontact mechanical wheat seed shooting device was developed for use in the North China Plain.The shooting depth increased with increasing shooting velocity and with increasing shooting angle.The tested parameters were statistically significant for average shooting depth (ASD), coefficient of variation of shooting depth (CVSD), and coefficient of variation of seeding amount (CVSA).The results from bench and field experiments indicated that the performance of the shooting device with the optimized parameters could fully meet the planting requirements for winter wheat in the North China Plain.Abstract. Planting performance is essential for wheat planters and seed emergence. In this study, a noncontact mechanical wheat seed shooting device was developed to simplify the planter structure, eliminate blockage of the soil-contacting parts, and enhance the stability of the sowing depth. A preliminary model of shooting wheat was developed using DEM software to simulate the shooting depth. The modeling results showed general trends of increased shooting depth with increasing shooting velocity and shooting angle, and decreased shooting depth with increasing shooting height. The shooting depth exceeded 30 mm when the shooting velocity of the wheat seeds was greater than 30 m s-1 and the shooting height was less than 150 mm. Additionally, to increase the stability of the sowing depth, this study investigated the effects of three operating parameters (forward speed, rotational speed of the shooting device, and shooting height) on the average shooting depth (ASD), shooting velocity of seed (SVS), coefficient of variation of shooting depth (CVSD), and coefficient of variation of seeding amount (CVSA). The SVS was proposed as an indicator of shooting performance. A three-factor central-composite experiment was performed to understand the parameter interactions and verify the optimal parameter values. The results from bench and field experiments demonstrated that the performance of the shooting device with the optimized parameters could fully meet the sowing requirements for winter wheat in the North China Plain. The ASD, CVSD, CVSA, and SVS of the seed shooting device with the optimized parameters were 34.6 mm, 9.3%, 13.9%, and 35.8 m s-1, respectively. The seed damage rate (SDR), seed germination rate (SGR), and coefficient of variation of seeding uniformity (CVSU) in the field experiment were 0.9%, 88.2%, and 13.5%, respectively. Keywords: Coefficient of variation of shooting depth, Shooting device, Shooting velocity, Winter wheat.

Cui Zhang,1 Jingyi Ju,1 Xiaohan Wu,1 Jiaolan Yang,1 Qinglu Yang,1 Changqin Liu,1 Liang Chen,1 Xiaomin Sun1,2 1Gastroenterology Department, The Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Gastroenterology Department, The Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, Chongming Branch, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xiaomin SunThe Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, Tongji University, Yanchang Middle Road No. 301, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 021 6630 1164Email sxmglcly@163.comPurpose: To investigate the therapeutic effect of Tripterygium wilfordii polyglycoside (TWP), a derivative from a Chinese traditional herb, on 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced colitis, in a model for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in rats.Methods: TWP was administrated to Wistar rats during TNBS-induced colitis to determine its therapeutic effect on active inflammation using the Quantitative Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR), flow cytometry, and Western blotting. Peripheral blood CD4+ T-cells were isolated from patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) and incubated with TWP to verify its immune regulation mechanism by qRT-PCR and flow cytometry.Results: Intragastric administration of TWP attenuated the severity of intestinal inflammation in TNBS-induced rat colitis, characterized by decreased DAI, histopathological scores, and expression of IL-6, TNFα, IFNγ, and IL-17A in intestinal mucosa. Furthermore, TWP reduced IL-17A+CD4+ T-cells, while enhanced Foxp3+CD25+CD4+ T-cells in peripheral blood, mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN), and spleen in rat colitis. Downstream signaling including ROR-γt, STAT3, and HIF1α expression in intestinal mucosa were suppressed by TWP. In addition, incubation with TWP suppressed IL-17A+CD4+ T-cell differentiation, while it promoted Foxp3+CD25+CD4+ T-cell differentiation in CD4+ T-cells isolated from UC patients.Conclusion: TWP successfully ameliorated experimental rat colitis via regulating innate immune responses as well as Th17/Treg balance in intestinal mucosa, peripheral blood, MLN, and spleen. Moreover, the differentiation of peripheral blood CD4+ T-cell isolated from patients with UC was modulated by TWP. TWP may act as an optional complementary and alternative medicine for IBD.Keywords: inflammatory bowel disease, Tripterygium wilfordii polyglycoside, intestinal mucosa immunity, T helper 17 cell, regulatory T-cell

Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients with postural instability and gait disorder phenotype (PIGD) are at high risk of cognitive deficits compared to those with tremor dominant phenotype (TD). Alterations of white matter (WM) integrity can occur in patients with normal cognitive functions (PD-N). However, the alterations of WM integrity related to cognitive functions in PD-N, especially in these two motor phenotypes, remain unclear. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a non-invasive neuroimaging method to evaluate WM properties and by applying DTI tractography, one can identify WM tracts connecting functional regions. Here, we 1) compared the executive function (EF) in PIGD phenotype with normal cognitive functions (PIGD-N) and TD phenotype with normal cognitive functions (TD-N) phenotypes; 2) used DTI tractography to evaluated differences in WM alterations between these two phenotypes within a task-based functional network; and 3) examined the WM integrity alterations related to EF in a whole brain network for PD-N patients regardless of phenotypes.Thirty-four idiopathic PD-N patients were classified into two groups based on phenotypes: TD-N and PIGD-N, using an algorithm based on UPDRS part III. Neuropsychological tests were used to evaluate patients’ EF, including the Trail making test part A and B, the Stroop color naming, the Stroop word naming, the Stroop color-word interference task, as well as the FAS verbal fluency task and the animal category fluency tasks. DTI measures were calculated among WM regions associated with the verbal fluency network defined from previous task fMRI studies, and compared between PIGD-N and TD-N groups. In addition, the relationship of DTI measures and verbal fluency scores were evaluated for our full cohort of PD-N patients within the whole brain network. These values were also correlated with the scores of the FAS verbal fluency task.Only the FAS verbal fluency test showed significant group differences, having lower scores in PIGD-N when compared to TD-N phenotype (p < 0.05). Compared to the TD-N, PIGD-N group exhibited significantly higher MD and RD in the tracts connecting the left superior temporal gyrus and left insula, and those connecting the right pars opercularis and right insula. Moreover, compared to TD-N, PIGD-N group had significantly higher RD in the tracts connecting right pars opercularis and right pars triangularis, and the tracts connecting right inferior temporal gyrus and right middle temporal gyrus. For the entire PD-N cohort, FAS verbal fluency scores positively correlated with MD in the superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF).This study confirmed that PIGD-N phenotype has more deficits in verbal fluency task than TD-N phenotype. Additionally, our findings suggest: (1) PIGD-N shows more microstructural changes related to FAS verbal fluency task when compared to TD-N phenotype; (2) SLF plays an important role in FAS verbal fluency task in PD-N patients regardless of motor phenotypes.

Lay Summary At present, the conventional therapies for acute severe ulcerative colitis (ASUC) mainly include corticosteroids, cyclosporin, and biological agents. However, the treatment of patients with severe steroid-refractory ulcerative colitis remains a serious challenge to clinicians. This study reports a case of steroid-refractory ASUC treated with cyclosporin combined with tofacitinib after treatment failure with infliximab.

ObjectiveTo determine the prevalence of dysphagia among an older population and patients with stroke, head and neck cancers (HNCs) or neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) in China, to identify the factors associated with this condition, and to explore the relationship between dysphagia and nutritional status.MethodsThis study included participants 65 years and older living in the community or in nursing homes and patients who had sustained a stroke, HNC, or NDD also recruited in hospitals from 14 provinces of China. The presence of dysphagia was determined by use of a questionnaire, water swallowing test, and/or a videofluoroscopic swallowing study. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the possible associated risk factors. Body mass index was assessed as an indicator of malnutrition.ResultsA total of 5943 persons met the inclusion criteria and 2341 (39.4%) were identified with dysphagia, including the following: 51.14% of patients with stroke, 34.4% in HNCs, 48.3% in NDDs, and 19.2% of otherwise healthy older adults. The elderly with comorbidity (OR = 2.90, p

Aphasia is an acquired language disorder that is a common consequence of stroke. The pathogenesis of the disease is not fully understood, and as a result, current treatment options are not satisfactory. Here, we used blood oxygenation level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging to evaluate the activation of bilateral cortices in patients with Broca's aphasia 1 to 3 months after stroke. Our results showed that language expression was associated with multiple brain regions in which the right hemisphere participated in the generation of language. The activation areas in the left hemisphere of aphasia patients were significantly smaller compared with those in healthy adults. The activation frequency, volumes, and intensity in the regions related to language, such as the left inferior frontal gyrus (Broca's area), the left superior temporal gyrus, and the right inferior frontal gyrus (the mirror region of Broca's area), were lower in patients compared with healthy adults. In contrast, activation in the right superior temporal gyrus, the bilateral superior parietal lobule, and the left inferior temporal gyrus was stronger in patients compared with healthy controls. These results suggest that the right inferior frontal gyrus plays a role in the recovery of language function in the subacute stage of stroke-related aphasia by increasing the engagement of related brain areas.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive method to modulate cortical excitability in humans. Here, we examined the effects of anodal tDCS on suprahyoid motor evoked potentials (MEP) when applied over the hemisphere with stronger and weaker suprahyoid/submental projections, respectively, while study participants performed a swallowing task. Thirty healthy volunteers were invited to two experimental sessions and randomly assigned to one of two different groups. While in the first group stimulation was targeted over the hemisphere with stronger suprahyoid projections, the second group received stimulation over the weaker suprahyoid projections. tDCS was applied either as anodal or sham stimulation in a random cross-over design. Suprahyoid MEPs were assessed immediately before intervention, as well as 5, 30, 60, and 90 min after discontinuation of stimulation from both the stimulated and non-stimulated contralateral hemisphere. We found that anodal tDCS (a-tDCS) had long-lasting effects on suprahyoid MEPs on the stimulated side in both groups (tDCS targeting the stronger projections: F(1,14) = 96.2, p < 0.001; tDCS targeting the weaker projections: F(1,14) = 37.45, p < 0.001). While MEPs did not increase when elicited from the non-targeted hemisphere after stimulation of the stronger projections (F(1,14) = 0.69, p = 0.42), we found increased MEPs elicited from the non-targeted hemisphere after stimulating the weaker projections (at time points 30–90 min) (F(1,14) = 18.26, p = 0.001). We conclude that anodal tDCS has differential effects on suprahyoid MEPs elicited from the targeted and non-targeted hemisphere depending on the site of stimulation. This finding may be important for the application of a-tDCS in patients with dysphagia, for example after stroke.