Electroacupuncture improves learning and memory functions in a rat cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury model through PI3K/Akt signaling pathway activation

Electroacupuncture has been widely used to treat cognitive impairment after cerebral ischemia,but the underlying mechanism has not yet been fully elucidated.Studies have shown that autophagy plays an important role in the formation and development of cognitive impairment,and the phosphoinositide 3-kinase(PI3K)/Akt signaling pathway plays an important role in autophagy regulation.To investigate the role played by the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway in the electroacupuncture treatment of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion rat models,we first established a rat model of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion through the occlusion of the middle cerebral artery using the suture method.Starting at 2 hours after modeling,electroacupuncture was delivered at the Shenting(GV24)and Baihui(GV20)acupoints,with a dilatational wave(1-20 Hz frequency,2 mA intensity,6 V peak voltage),for 30 minutes/day over 8 consecutive days.Our results showed that electroacupuncture reduced the infarct volume in a rat model of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury,increased the mRNA expression levels of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathwayrelated factors Beclin-1,mammalian target of rapamycin(mTOR),and PI3K,increased the protein expression levels of phosphorylated Akt,Beclin-1,PI3K,and mTOR in the ischemic cerebral cortex,and simultaneously reduced p53 mRNA and protein expression levels.In the Morris water maze test,the latency to find the hidden platform was significantly shortened among rats subjected to electroacupuncture stimulation compared with rats without electroacupuncture stimulation.In the spatial probe test,the number of times that a rat crossed the target quadrant was increased in rats subjected to electroacupuncture stimulation compared with rats without electroacupuncture stimulation.Electroacupuncture stimulation applied to the Shenting(GV24)and Baihui(GV20)acupoints activated the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and improved rat learning and memory impairment.This study was approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine,China(approval No.8150150901)on March 10,2016.

Surgical strategies for Mirizzi syndrome:A ten-year single center experience

BACKGROUND Mirizzi syndrome(MS)remains a challenging biliary disease,and its low rate of preoperative diagnosis should be resolved.Moreover,technological advances have not resulted in decisive improvements in the surgical treatment of MS.Complex bile duct lesions due to MS make surgery difficult,especially when the laparoscopic approach is adopted.The safety and long-term effect of MS treatment need to be guaranteed in terms of preoperative diagnosis and surgical strategy.AIM To analyze preoperative diagnostic methods and the safety,effectiveness,prognosis and related factors of surgical strategies for different types of MS.METHODS The clinical data of MS patients who received surgical treatment from January 1,2010 to December 31,2020 were retrospectively reviewed.Patients with malignancies,choledochojejunal fistula,lack of data and lost to follow-up were excluded.According to preoperative imaging examination records and documented intraoperative findings,the clinical types of MS were determined using the Csendes classification.The safety,effectiveness and long-term prognosis of surgical treatment in different types of MS,and their interactions with the clinical characteristics of patients were summarized.RESULTS Sixty-six patients with MS were included(34 males and 32 females).Magnetic resonance imaging/magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography(MRI/MRCP)showed specific imaging features of MS in 58 cases(87.9%),which was superior to ultrasound scan(USS)in the diagnosis of MS and more sensitive to subtle biliary lesions than USS.The overall laparoscopic surgery completion rate was 53.03%(35/66),where the completion rates of MS type I,II and III were 69.05%(29/42),42.86%(6/14)and zero(0/10),respectively.Thirty-one patients(46.97%)underwent laparotomy or conversion to laparotomy including 11 cases of iatrogenic bile duct injury which occurred in type I patients,and 25 of these patients underwent bile duct exploration,repair and T-tube drainage.In addition,25 patients underwent intraoperative choledochoscopy and T-tube cholangiography.Overall,21 cases(31.8%)were repaired by simple suturing,and 14 cases(21.2%)were repaired using the remaining gallbladder wall patch in the subtotal cholecystectomy.The ascendant of the Csendes classification types led to an increase in surgical complexity reflected by increased operation time,bleeding volume and cost.Gender,acute abdominal pain and measurable stone size had no effect on Csendes type of MS or final surgical approach.Age had no effect on the classification of MS,but it influenced the final surgical approach,hospital stay and cost.A total of 66 patients obtained a relatively high preoperative diagnostic rate and underwent surgery safely without serious complications,and no mortality was observed during the follow-up period of 36.5±26.5 mo(range 13-76,median 22 mo).CONCLUSION MRI/MRCP can improve the preoperative diagnosis of MS.The Csendes classification can reflect the difficulty of treatment.The surgical strategies including laparoscopic surgery for MS should be formulated based on full evaluation and selection.

Microstructure and properties of SiC gradiently coated C_f/C composites prepared by a RCLD method

The SiC gradiently coated carbon fiber/carbon （Cf/C） composites were prepared by a two-step rapid chemical liquid deposition （RCLD） method. The microstructure and properties of the composites were investigated using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy together with energy dispersive X-ray analysis, bending tests, and oxidation tests. The experimental results show that the surface layer of the composites is composed of SiC, pyrocarbon, and carbon fibers. Their inner area consists of pyrocarbon and carbon fibers. The SiC content gradiently decreases with increasing distance from the outer surface to the center of the composites. Furthermore, the thickness of the SiC layer increases with increasing tetraethylorthosilicate content and deposition time. SiC coatings have no significant influence on the bending strength of the composites. However, the oxidation resistance of the composites increases with increasing thickness of the SiC layer.

Research in non-equalization machining method for spatial cam

Many kinds of devices with cam have been widely used in various mechanical equipments. However, non-equalization machining for spatial cam trough remains to be a difficult problem. This paper focuses on the analysis of running conditions and machining processes of spatial cam with oscillating follower. We point out the common errors in the biased distance cutting. By analyzing the motion of oscillating follower of spatial cam, we present a new 3D curve expansion model of spatial cam trough-outline. Based on this model, we have proposed a machining method for trochoidal milling with non-equalization diameter cutter. This new method has led to a creative and effective way for non-equalization diameter machining for spatial cam with oscillating follower.

Rotational Spectra of 2,3,6-Triuoropyridine:Effect of Fluorination on Ring Geometry

The ground state rotational spectrum of 2,3,6-trifluoropyridine has been investigated in the 2.0-20.0 GHz region by pulsed jet Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy.The experimental rotational constants are A=3134.4479(2)MHz,B=1346.79372(7)MHz,and C=941.99495(6)MHz.The transitions are so intense that rotational transitions of all mono13C and 15N isotopologues are measured in natural abundance.The semi-experimental equilibrium rotational constants of the 7 isotopologues were derived by taking account of the anharmonic vibrational corrections,which allowed a semi-experimental determination of the equilibrium structure of 2,3,6-trifluoropyridine.

Influences of the Three Gorges Project on seismic activities in the reservoir area

Reservoir-induced earthquakes related with the construction of the Three Gorges Project have attracted great concerns of the public. Since the first water impoundment on May 25, 2003, a number of earthquakes have occurred during the water storage stages, in which the largest was the Badong M5.1 earthquake on December 16, 2013. In this paper, the relationships between seismic activities, b value, seismic parameters, and reservoir water level fluctuations are studied. In addition, based on the digital seismic waveform data obtained since 2000, the focal depth changes and focal mechanism characteristics before and after the water impoundment are studied as well. These provide us important information to understand the earthquake mechanisms. The results show that these earthquakes are typical reservoir-induced earthquakes, which are closely related to water infiltration, pore pressure, and water level fluctuations.The majority of the micro and small earthquakes are caused by karst collapse, mine collapse, bank reformation, superficial unloading, and so on. The larger earthquakes are related to the fault structures to some extent. Due to the persistent effects of water impoundment on the seismic and geological environments around the reservoir and water infiltration into the rocks, the influences on the crustal deformation field, gravity field, seepage field, and fault medium-softening action may vary gradually from a higher strength to a weaker one. Therefore, it is possible that small earthquakes and few medium earthquakes(M≤5.5) will occur in the reservoir area in the future.

On the core of the fractional Fourier transform and its role in composing complex fractional Fourier transformations and Fresnel transformations

By a quantum mechanical analysis of the additive rule Fa [Fβ[f]] = Fα＋β[f], which the fractional Fourier transformation （FrFT） Fα [f] should satisfy, we reveal that the position-momentum mutual- transformation operator is the core element for constructing the integration kernel of FrFT. Based on this observation and the two mutually conjugate entangled-state representations, we then derive a core operator for enabling a complex fractional Fourier transformation （CFrFT）, which also obeys the additive rule. In a similar manner, we also reveal the fractional transformation property for a type of Fresnel operator.

On the entangled fractional squeezing transformation

We propose an entangled fractional squeezing transformation （EFrST） generated by using two mu- tually conjugate entangled state representations with the following operator： e-iα（a1a2＋a1a2）eiπa2a2; this transformation sharply contrasts the complex fractional Fourier transformation produced by e-ia（a1a1＋a2a2）eiπa2a2 （see Front. Phys. DOI 10.1007/s11467-014-0445-x）. The EFrST is obtained by converting the triangular functions in the integration kernel of the usual fractional Fourier transformation into hyperbolic functions, i.e., tan α→ tanh α and sin α→ sinh α. The fractional property of the EFrST can be well described by virtue of the properties of the entangled state representations.

Evolution law of Wigner function in laser process

Based on the density operator＇s operator-sum representation recently obtained by Fan and Hu for a laser process （Opt. Commun., 2008, 281： 5571; Opt. Commun., 2009, 282： 932; Phys. Lett. B, 2008, 22： 2435）, we derive the evolution law of Wigner operator, the law is concisely expressed in T exp[-2T（ate-（k-g）t - a.）（ae-（k-g）t a）]; where g the normally ordered form A（a,a＊,t） = -T/π., and a are the cavity gain and the loss, respectively, and T - （a - g）（g-t-g - 2ge-2（k-g）t）-1. When 1 exp[-2（at a＊）（a a）] which is the initial Wigner operator. Using this t = O, A（a,a＊,t） →1/π , formalism the evolution law of Wigner functions in laser process can be directly obtained.