Association between brain N-acetylaspartate levels and sensory and motor dysfunction in patients who have spinal cord injury with spasticity:an observational case-control study

Spinal cord injury is a severe and devastating disease,and spasticity is a common and severe complication that is notoriously refractory to treatment.However,the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying spasticity and its development remain largely unknown.The goal of the present study was to find differences,if any,in metabolites of the left precentral gyrus and basal ganglia of patients who have spinal cord injury with or without spasticity,and to explore the relationship between the brain metabolite concentrations and clinical status.Thirty-six participants were recruited for magnetic resonance spectroscopic examination:23 with spinal cord injury(12 with spasticity and 11 without spasticity)and 13 healthy controls.We acquired localized proton spectra from the precentral gyrus and basal ganglia via 10 mm^(3) voxels.Notably,univariate linear regression analysis demonstrated that the lower that the N-acetylaspartate concentration(a marker for neuronal loss)was in the precentral gyrus of the patients,the lower their ASIA(American Spinal Injury Association)light-touch scores,pinprick scores,and motor scores.Additionally,longer durations of injury were associated with higher N-acetylaspartate levels in the precentral gyrus.Compared with the healthy participants and patients without spasticity,N-acetylaspartate levels in the patients with spasticity were significantly lower in both the precentral gyrus and basal ganglia.Lower N-acetylaspartate levels also correlated with greater sensory and motor dysfunction in the patients who had spinal cord injury with spasticity.

Crustal and uppermost mantle structure of SE Tibetan plateau from Rayleigh-wave group-velocity measurements

A shear-wave velocity model of the crust and uppermost mantle beneath the SE Tibetan plateau was derived by inverting Rayleigh-wave group-velocity mea- surements of periods between 10 and 70 s. Rayleigh-wave group-velocity dispersions along more than 3,000 inter- station paths were measured based on analysis of telese- ismic wavelbrm data recorded by temporary seismic stations. These observations were then utilized to construct 2D group-velocity maps in the period range of 10-70 s. Tile new group-velocity maps have an enhanced resolution compared with previous global and regional group-velocity models in this region because of the denser and more uniform data coverage. The lateral resolution across the region is about 0.5° for the periods used in this study. Local dispersion curves were then inverted for a 3D shear-wave velocity model of the region by applying a linear inversion scheme. Our 3D shear-wave model confirms the presence of low-velocity zones （LVZs） in the crust beneath the northern part of this region. Our irnaging shows that the upper-middle crustal LVZ beneath the Tengchong region is isolated from these LVZs beneath the eastern and northern part of this region. The upper-middle crustal LVZ may be regarded as evidence of a rnagma chamber in the crust beneath the Tengchong Volcanoes. Our model also reveals a slow lithospheric structure beneath Tengchong and a fast shield-like mantle beneath the stable Yangtze block.

Effect of vocal respiratory training on respiratory function and respiratory neural plasticity in patients with cervical spinal cord injury:a randomized controlled trial

In previous studies,researchers have used singing to treat respiratory function in patients with spinal cord injury.However,few studies have examined the way in which vocal training affects respiratory neural plasticity in patients with spinal cord injury.Vocal respiratory training(VRT)is a type of vocal muscle-related treatment that is often a component of music therapy(MT)and focuses on strengthening respiratory muscles and improving lung function.In this randomized controlled study,we analyzed the therapeutic effects of VRT on respiratory dysfunction at 3 months after cervical spinal cord injury.Of an initial group of 37 patients,26 completed the music therapy intervention,which comprised five 30-minute sessions per week for 12 weeks.The intervention group(n=13)received VRT training delivered by professional certified music therapists.The control group(n=13)received respiratory physical therapy delivered by professional physical therapists.Compared with the control group,we observed a substantial increase in respiratory function in the intervention group after the 12-week intervention.Further,the nerve fiber bundles in the respiratory center in the medulla exhibited a trend towards increased diversification,with an increased number,path length,thickness,and density of nerve fiber bundles.These findings provide strong evidence for the effect of music therapeutic VRT on neural plasticity.This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of China Rehabilitation Research Center(approval No.2020-013-1)on April 1,2020,and was registered with the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry(registration No.Chi CTR2000037871)on September 2,2020.

The 2^(nd) Qilu International Forum on Molecular Imaging Call for Papers

The 2nd Qilu International Forum on Molecular Imaging will be convened from September 26 to 29,2013 in Yantai,Shandong,China.This event is jointly hosted by Binzhou Medical University,Publishing House of Chinese Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging and China Strategic Alliance of Modern Medical Technology Innovation.It is a

Crustal and upper mantle structure and deep tectonic genesis of large earthquakes in North China

From the 1960 s to 1970 s, North China has been hit by a series of large earthquakes. During the past half century,geophysicists have carried out numerous surveys of the crustal and upper mantle structure, and associated studies in North China.They have made significant progress on several key issues in the geosciences, such as the crustal and upper mantle structure and the seismogenic environment of strong earthquakes. Deep seismic profiling results indicate a complex tectonic setting in the strong earthquake areas of North China, where a listric normal fault and a low-angle detachment in the upper crust coexist with a high-angle deep fault passing through the lower crust to the Moho beneath the hypocenter. Seismic tomography images reveal that most of the large earthquakes occurred in the transition between the high-and low-velocity zones, and the Tangshan earthquake area is characterized by a low-velocity anomaly in the middle-lower crust. Comprehensive analysis of geophysical data identified that the deep seismogenic environment in the North China extensional tectonic region is generally characterized by a low-velocity anomalous belt beneath the hypocenter, inconsistency of the deep and shallow structures in the crust, a steep crustalal-scale fault,relative lower velocities in the uppermost mantle, and local Moho uplift, etc. This indicates that the lithospheric structure of North China has strong heterogeneities. Geologically, the North China region had been a stable craton named the North China Craton or in brief the NCC, containing crustal rocks as old as ～3.8 Ga. The present-day strong seismic activity and the lower velocity of the lower crust in the NCC are much different from typical stable cratons around the world. These findings provide significant evidence for the destruction of the NCC. Although deep seismic profiling and seismic tomography have greatly enhanced knowledge about the deep-seated structure and seismogenic environment, some fundamental issues still remain and require further work.

“嫦娥一号”奔月记

号外号外!各位有意去月球的朋友们,请准备好一寸照片,个人简历以及其他相关材料,送到国家航天局。据可靠消息,为庆祝中秋,要招聘嫦娥!(注意:请自带兔子)——2007年最火热的招聘广告不过,现在可不用再去报名了,因为我们的"嫦娥一号"早已飞到月球,现在正在为我们提供来自月球的最新信息呢。

零危险跳伞

成语"神兵天降"用来形容伞兵再合适不过了。而如今,跳伞不仅只具有军事用途,它也是一项惊险刺激的户外运动,堪称勇敢者的游戏。跳伞者通常会乘飞机、气球等航空器升至高空后跳下,在合适的高度打开降落伞,最终在指定区域安全着陆。可如果作为一名初学者,莽莽撞撞就去参加实战跳伞训练,真的能保证安全着陆吗?

世博园里乐趣多

万众瞩目的上海世博会就要在5月1日这天隆重开幕了。这场我们期盼已久的盛会将给我们展示哪些有趣的东西呢？用“油棕”“大豆”建成的奇特建筑、可以演秦美妙乐曲的美女机器人乐队，