Progress in neurorehabilitation research and the support by the National Natural Science Foundation of China from 2010 to 2022

The National Natural Science Foundation of China is one of the major funding agencies for neuro rehabilitation research in China.This study reviews the frontier directions and achievements in the field of neurorehabilitation in China and wo rldwide.We used data from the Web of Science Core Collection(WoSCC) database to analyze the publications and data provided by the National Natural Science Foundation of China to analyze funding information.In addition,the prospects for neurorehabilitation research in China are discussed.From 2010 to 2022,a total of 74,220 publications in neurorehabilitation were identified,with there being an overall upward tendency.During this period,the National Natural Science Foundation of China has funded 476 research projects with a total funding of 192.38 million RMB to support neuro rehabilitation research in China.With the support of the National Natural Science Foundation of China,China has made some achievements in neurorehabilitation research.Research related to neurorehabilitation is believed to be making steady and significant progress in China.

Aortic Dissection Research in China:Analysis of Studies Funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China

Objective The National Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC)has made great progress in promoting the development of aortic dissection research in recent years.This study aimed to examine the development and research status of aortic dissection research in China so as to provide references for future research.Methods The NSFC projects data from 2008 to 2019 were collected from the Internet-based Science Information System and other websites utilized as search engines.The publications and citations were retrieved by Google Scholar,and the impact factors were checked by the InCite Journal Citation Reports database.The investigator’s degree and department were identified from the institutional faculty profiles.Results A total of 250 grant funds totaling 124.3 million Yuan and resulting in 747 publications were analyzed.The funds in economically developed and densely populated areas were more than those in underdeveloped and sparsely populated areas.There was no significant difference in the amount of funding per grant between different departments’investigators.However,the funding output ratios of the grants for cardiologists were higher than those for basic science investigators.The amount of funding for clinical researchers and basic scientific researchers in aortic dissection was also similar.Clinical researchers were better in terms of the funding output ratio.Conclusion These results suggest that the medical and scientific research level of aortic dissection in China has been greatly improved.However,there are still some problems that urgently need to be solved,such as the unreasonable regional allocation of medical and scientific research resources,and the slow transition from basic science to clinical practice.

The 2010–2020 National Natural Science Foundation of China:Radiation Therapy

Objective This study explains the application number and funding rate of oncology projects undertaken by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC),with focus on tumor radiotherapy-related research over the past 11 years.Methods A stratified analysis was carried out on the application and funding status of tumor radiotherapy studies in different NSFC project categories,different research areas,and different tumor types.Research areas that required specific focus,such as immunology-related radiotherapy,multimodality imaging and radiomics,and post-radiotherapy organ injury,were separately analyzed.Results The status and development trends of various related research fields were studied,and the research results were presented with the support of the NSFC,in order to provide reference for future applications and funding allocations.Conclusion The number of applications for funding increases every year.Although the total number of funded projects has also increased every year,the funding rate has decreased year by year.Projects on radiotherapy and immunization have been at the forefront in recent years,and the funding rate for these projects increases yearly.

Establishment of an index system for evaluating outstanding biomedical scientists for science foundation of Shanghai

Objective:To establish a scientific,objective and applicable index system for evaluating out- standing biomedical scientists for science foundation of Shanghai.Methods:According to the principal in- dices that have been used in the developed countries for evaluating their talented personnel and the reality of our country,an index system was set up to evaluate the outstanding biomedical scientists for Shanghai science foundation.The following parameters were used to simplify the indices.,correlation coefficient, multiple correlation coefficient,partial correlation coefficient,creditability,and discriminatory power. And analytic hierarchy process was used to determine the weights of each index.Results and Conclusions: The established index system is scientific and applicable;it is helpful for cultivating and evaluating out- standing biomedical scientists.

The Swiss National Science Foundation

Introduction The Swiss National Science Foundation （SNSF） is Switzerland＇s leading provider of scientific research funding. The SNSF annually supports some 7 200 researchers, almost 80 percent of whom are aged 35 years or younger. With its federal mandate, it supports basic research in all disciplines, from philosophy and biology to the nanosciences and medicine. It also invests in applied research in various scientific fields. The focus of its activities is the scientific endorsement of projects submitted by researchers. The best applicants are funded by the SNSF with an annual total amount equaling approximately CHF 700 million.

LIRR's Project of “Study on Spalling Mechanism Mechanism of Dense Refractory Castables by Rapid Heating-up” Being Obtained the Support from National Natural Natural Science Foundation of China

LIRR＇s Priject of ＂Research on Spalling Mechanism Due to Rapid Heating-up of Dense Refractory Castables＂ declared by Wang Zhanmin,vice-president of LIRR,will gain the fund support from National Natural Science Foundation of China in 2011.

Effects of Wen Dan Tang on insomnia-related anxiety and levels of the brain-gut peptide Ghrelin

Ghrelin, a brain-gut peptide that induces anxiety and other abnormal emotions, contributes to the effects of insomnia on emotional behavior. In contrast, the traditional Chinese Medi- cine remedy Wen Dan Tang reduces insomnia-related anxiety, which may perhaps correspond to changes in the brain-gut axis. This suggests a possible relationship between Wen Dan Tan^s pharmacological mechanism and the brain-gut axis. Based on this hypothesis, a sleep-deprived rat model was induced and Wen Dan Tang was administered using oral gavage during model es- tablishment. Wen Dan Tang significantly reduced insomnia-related anxiety and prevented Ghrelin level decreases following sleep deprivation, especially in the hypothalamus. Increased expression of Ghrelin receptor mRNA in the hypothalamus was also observed, suggesting that reduced anxi- ety may be a result of Wen Dan Tan＇s regulation of Ghrelin-Ghrelin receptors.

SOD-like Activities of SOD and Cu(Ⅱ)Complexes inLiposomes

The SOD-like activities of SOD, four Cu(Ⅱ)Complexes, SOD-and Cu(Ⅱ)com-plex-liposomes were determined respectively by using cytochrome C method. The results showed that all of these systems had SOD-like activities to some extent of which the Cu(His)_2-liposome displayed the highest activity and the Cu(Ⅱ)complexes and liposomes had some positive cooperative action.

SOME NEW ITERATIVE ALGORITHMS FOR MONOTONE MIXED VARIATIONAL INEQUALITIES

In this paper,some new iterative algorithms for monotone mixed variational inequalities and the convergence in real Hilbert spaces are studied.

Viewing the current situation of pig model application in China’s medical field from the application and funding of NSFC

Background:The National Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC)is an important part of China’s innovation system.In the last decade,the pig has become more and more widely used in the field of medical science,especially in otology research.Objective:By analyzing and summarizing the funding information over recent years,we intend to identify the characteristics and trends of funding for research using pig models and provide references for future development.Material and methods:This is a comprehensive analysis of features in funding for research projects involving pig models by the NSFC in the past 10 years,with a focus on projects in the field of otolaryngology/head and neck surgery.Results:Both the number and amount of funding provided by the NSFC for research involving pig models are on the rise with each passing year.Researchers at the PLA General Hospital have completed a number of studies using miniature pigs in cochlear morphology,electrophysiology,cochlear implantation,cochlear transcription analysis,gene therapy,inner ear disease modeling and Eustachian tube pathology modeling.Conclusion:Pigs as an ideal large mammal model are well suited in the current national basic research strategy in China,and can help further strengthen China’s leading position in basic research in the world.

LOCAL 2-COCYCLES

The aim of this paper is to show that every local 2-cocycle of a von Neumann algebra R with coefficients in S (a unital dual R-bimodule) is a 2-cocycle.

Radiotherapy in combination with systemic therapies for brain metastases:current status and progress

Brain metastases(BMs)are the most common cause of intracranial neoplasms in adults with poor prognosis.Most BMs originate from lung cancer,breast cancer,or melanoma.Radiotherapy(RT),including whole brain radiotherapy(WBRT)and stereotactic radiation surgery(SRS),has been widely explored and is considered a mainstay anticancer treatment for BMs.Over the past decade,the advent of novel systemic therapies has revolutionized the treatment of BMs.In this context,there is a strong rationale for using a combination of treatments based on RT,with the aim of achieving both local disease control and extracranial disease control.This review focuses on describing the latest progress in RT as well as the synergistic effects of the optimal combinations of RT and systemic treatment modalities for BMs,to provide perspectives on current treatments.

Sialic acid accelerates the electrophoretic velocity of injured dorsal root ganglion neurons

Peripheral nerve injury has been shown to result in ectopic spontaneous discharges on soma and injured sites of sensory neurons, thereby inducing neuropathic pain. With the increase of membrane proteins on soma and injured site neurons, the negatively charged sialic acids bind to the external domains of membrane proteins, resulting in an increase of this charge. We therefore speculate that the electrophoretic velocity of injured neurons may be faster than non-injured neurons. The present study established rat models of neuropathic pain via chronic constriction injury. Results of the cell electrophoresis test revealed that the electrophoretic velocity of injured neuronal cells was faster than that of non-injured （control） cells. We then treated cells with divalent cations of Ca2＋ and organic compounds with positive charges, polylysine to counteract the negatively charged sialic acids, or neuraminidase to specifically remove sialic acids from the membrane surface of injured neurons. All three treatments significantly reduced the electrophoretic velocity of injured neuronal cells. These findings suggest that enhanced sialic acids on injured neurons may accelerate the electrophoretic velocity of injured neurons.

Resting-state connectivity in the default mode network and insula during experimental low back pain

Functional magnetic resonance imaging studies have shown that the insular cortex has a signif- icant role in pain identification and information integration, while the default mode network is associated with cognitive and memory-related aspects of pain perception. However, changes in the functional connectivity between the defauk mode network and insula during pain remain unclear. This study used 3.0 T functional magnetic resonance imaging scans in 12 healthy sub- jects aged 24.8 ± 3.3 years to compare the differences in the functional activity and connectivity of the insula and default mode network between the baseline and pain condition induced by intramuscular injection of hypertonic saline. Compared with the baseline, the insula was more functionally connected with the medial prefrontal and lateral temporal cortices, whereas there was lower connectivity with the posterior cingulate cortex, precuneus and inferior parietal lobule in the pain condition. In addition, compared with baseline, the anterior cingulate cortex exhibited greater connectivity with the posterior insula, but lower connectivity with the anterior insula, during the pain condition. These data indicate that experimental low back pain led to dysfunction in the connectivity between the insula and default mode network resulting from an impairment of the regions of the brain related to cognition and emotion, suggesting the impor- tance of the interaction between these regions in pain processing.

Increased expression of Notch1 in temporal lobe epilepsy: animal models and clinical evidence

Temporal lobe epilepsy is associated with astrogliosis. Notchl signaling can induce astrogliosis in glioma. However, it remains unknown whether Notchl signaling is involved in the pathogenesis of epilepsy. This study investigated the presence of Notchl, hairy and enhancer of split-l, and glial fibrillary acidic protein in the temporal neocortex and hippocampus of lithium-pilocar- pine-treated rats. The presence of Notchl and hairy and enhancer of split-1 was also explored in brain tissues of patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy. Quantitative electroencephalo- gram analysis and behavioral observations were used as auxiliary measures. Results revealed that the presence of Notchl, hairy and enhancer of split-l, and glial fibriUary acidic protein were en- hanced in status epilepticus and vehicle-treated spontaneous recurrent seizures rats, but remain unchanged in the following groups： control, absence of either status epilepticus or spontaneous recurrent seizures, and zileuton-treated spontaneous recurrent seizures. Compared with patient control cases, the presences of Notch1 and hairy and enhancer of split- 1 were upregulated in the temporal neocortex of patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy. Therefore, these results suggest that Notchl signaling may play an important role in the onset of temporal lobe epilepsy via astrogliosis. Furthermore, zileuton may be a potential therapeutic strategy for temporal lobe epilepsy by blocking Notchl signaling.

National Natural Science Foundation and I

1 My Struggle and CareerI was born in Chang’an County, Shaanxi Province. After graduated from high school in 1974,I experienced a country life for four years in my hometown. In early 1978, I became a student of Shaanxi Mechanical Institute (now Xi’an University of Technology),

The progress of human geography in China under the support of the National Natural Science Foundation of China

This paper analyzes the role of the National Natural Science Foundation of China（NSFC） in advancing human geography in China by focusing on five key research areas： land use, urban systems and urban agglomeration, economic globalization, climate change and social and cultural geographies. All NSFC-funded human geography programs related to these five topics from 1986 to 2017 comprise the sample for analysis, and the research topics, content, teams, and peer-reviewed journal publications supported by these programs are investigated. Specifically, this paper analyzes the NSFC＇s promotion of the expansion of research topics in response to national developmental needs and the shifting frontiers of human geography research internationally, its enhancement of interdisciplinary research, and its contributions to the assembly of specialized research teams. The paper also reports important progress in Chinese human geography over the past 30 years through the institutional lens of the NSFC, revealing major characteristics and trends in the discipline. The paper concludes by calling for further collaboration between the research community and the NSFC for the development of a locally suitable and globally influential Chinese human geography.