Acute effect of twice-daily 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation on treatment-resistant depression: a case series study

Totheeditor:Major depressive disorder(MDD)is a principal cause of disability worldwide and is often associated with high morbidity and mortality rates.Although there are several therapies available for the treatment of depression,about one-third of patients with MMD will not respond to two or more antidepressant drugs with different mechanisms;the patients are then referred to as having treatment-resistant depression(TRD).Patients with TRD have a poorer quality of life,greater economic burden and increased suicidal behaviours.Therefore,new antidepressant treatments that are effective,safe,long-lasting and tolerable are needed.Ketamine infusion,intranasal esketamine and transcranial magnetic stimulation(TMS)have been used to treat early stage TRD.’A recent review suggests that electroconvulsive therapy(ECT)may be superior to ketamine for reducing depression severity in the acute treatment of TRD.

MOF-derived Co-MOF,O-doped carbon as trifunctional electrocatalysts to enable highly efficient Zn-air batteries and water-splitting

Development of high-efficiency non-noble electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction(ORR),oxygen evolution reaction(OER)and hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)is urgently needed for high-performance Zn-air batteries and overall water splitting.Here,a facile strategy to synthesize novel Co-MOF,O-doped carbon(Co-MOF-T)based on Zn,Co-doped glucosamine and ZIF-8 by pyrolysis at temperature T was demonstrated.The prepared Co-MOF-800 showed a superior oxygen reduction reaction(ORR)activity comparable to that of commercial Pt/C catalyst.In addition,this catalyst shows great potential in the overall water splitting due to the excellent oxygen evolution reaction(OER)and hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)activities.Based on the trifunctional activity,the primary Zn-air batteries using a Co-MOF-800 air electrode achieved a high open-circuit voltage of 1.38 V,a specific capacity of 671.6 mAh g^(-1) Zn,and a prominent peak power density of 144 mW cm^(-2).Also,the rechargeable Zn-air batteries based on CoMOF-800 air electrode could be smoothly run for 510 cycles with a low voltage gap of 0.58 V.Finally,the trifunctional Co-MOF-800 catalyst was applied to boost the electrochemical water splitting,demonstrating its promising potential as a green energy material for practical applications.

Cloning the Dmrt1 and DmrtA2 genes of ayu(Plecoglossus altivelis) and mapping their expression in adult,larval,and embryonic stages

The Dmrt family of genes are involved in sex differentiation in different species of invertebrates, and some vertebrates including human. In this study, we cloned the full-length eDNA of ayu （Plecoglossus altivelis） Draft1 and DmrtA2. Sequence and phylogenetic tree analyses showed ayu Dmrtl showed highest similarity to that of Oncorhynchus mykiss while ayu DmrtA2 is most similar to that of Oryzias latipes. Fluorescence-based quantitative reverse transcription PCR （qRT-PCR） revealed the Draft1 was predominantly expressed in the testis. At the larval stages, Dmrtl mRNA expression level was highest during 52-64 days post hatching （dph） and at the gastrula stage during embryonic development. DmrtA2, meanwhile, was specifically expressed in the ovary and was highly expressed in the female brain tissue, but not male brain tissue. During the larval stages, DmrtA2 expression remained high before day 34, and then fluctuated while generally decreasing. During embryonic development, DmrtA2 expression increased gradually and peaked at the hatching stage. Our data suggest that ayu Dmrtl might participate in the differentiation and maintenance of testis while DmrtA2 may play a role in ovary-differentiation and mature-ovary maintenance. DmrtA2 might also participate in brain development.

Visualization and correction of social abnormalities-associated neural ensembles in adult MECP2 duplication mice

Duplications of MECP2-containing genomic segments led to severe autistic symptoms in male. Transgenic mice overexpressing the human MECP2 gene exhibit autistic-like behaviors. Neural circuits underlying social defects in MECP2 transgenic(MECP2-TG) mice remain unknown. To observe neural activity of MECP2-TG mice in vivo, we performed calcium imaging by implantation of microendoscope in the hippocampal CA1 regions of MECP2-TG and wild type(WT) mice. We identified neurons whose activities were tightly associated with social interaction, which activity patterns were compromised in MECP2-TG mice. Strikingly, we rescued the social-related neural activity in CA1 and social defects in MECP2-TG mice by deleting the human MECP2 transgene using the CRISPR/Cas9 method during adulthood.Our data points to the neural circuitry responsible for social interactions and provides potential therapeutic targets for autism in adulthood.