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Amauroderma rugosum Extract Improves Brain Function in d-Galactose-Induced Aging Mouse Models via the Regulatory Effects of Its Polysaccharides on Oxidation, the mTOR-Dependent Pathway, and Gut Microbiota
Get PDFThe pharmacological effects of Amauroderma rugosum (AR), an edible mushroom found mainly in Southeast Asia, are not well studied, particularly its neuroprotective properties. This study investigated the neuroprotective effects of AR aqueous extract (ARW) in a d-galactose-induced accelerated aging mouse model and senescent SH-SY5Y neuronal cells. Behavioral tests (open field, Morris water maze, Y-maze, and rotarod) demonstrated that d-galactose-induced aging mice exhibited impaired cognitive function, memory loss, anxiety, and reduced locomotor ability, all of which were alleviated by ARW treatment. Histological analysis showed that ARW reduced neuropathological lesions in the hippocampus. In SH-SY5Y neuronal cells, ARW and AR polysaccharide extract (ARP) enhanced cell viability and decreased intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in a concentration-dependent manner. ARW and ARP also reduced cellular senescence and apoptosis in d-galactose-treated cells. Western blot analysis indicated that ARW and ARP upregulated the phosphorylation of mTOR and increased the expression of antioxidant enzymes, including superoxide dismutase 1 and heme-oxygenase-1. Additionally, ARW altered the gut microbiota, increasing the relative abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Lactobacillus reuteri and decreasing harmful bacteria like Clostridium scindens. These findings suggest that AR exerts neuroprotective effects primarily through its polysaccharides by modulating oxidative stress, activating the mTOR-dependent pathway, and influencing the gut microbiota. Consequently, AR could serve as a potential dietary supplement for the prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.published_or_final_versio
A Commentary on “Far-Lateral Transforaminal Unilateral Biportal Endoscopic Lumbar Discectomy for Upper Lumbar Disc Herniations”
No full textThe moderating influence of safety on green space's health benefits in Chinese urban communities
No full textGreen spaces are known to promote physical and mental health, but their benefits may be undermined by poor community safety. Few studies have explored how crime victimization or perceived safety influence the health benefits of different green spaces, particularly in rapidly urbanizing developing countries. Using multi-year data from the China Labor-force Dynamics Survey (CLDS) comprising 24,834 observations across 242 urban communities, this study examines whether community safety moderates the health benefits of green spaces in urban China. Green space types and characteristics were assessed through the presence of park/square and green coverage ratio, while health was proxied by self-rated health (SRH). Community safety was measured by residents’ crime victimization experiences and perceived community safety. Results from hierarchical linear model revealed positive associations between both green coverage ratio and community safety with SRH. Crime victimization diminishes the health benefits of park/square, whilst low perceived safety hinders the health benefits of green coverage. These findings highlight the importance of considering both green space types and objective/perceived community safety to promote the health benefits of urban green spaces
Enantioselective Zn-catalyzed hydrophosphinylation of nitrones: an efficient approach for constructing chiral α-hydroxyamino-phosphine oxides
No full textAlthough enantioselective hydrofunctionalizations of nitrones are established for the synthesis of various types of chiral hydroxylamines, the asymmetric catalytic hydrophosphinylation of nitrones remains highly challenging. Herein, an efficient asymmetric hydrophosphinylation of nitrones, catalyzed by the dinuclear zinc catalyst derived from ProPhenol, is presented, accommodating a variety of nitrones and phosphine oxides. This approach successfully addresses the long-standing challenge of catalytic hydrophosphinylation of the C 00000000 00000000 00000000 00000000 11111111 00000000 11111111 00000000 00000000 00000000 N bond, and offers an efficient and rapid access towards chiral α-hydroxyamino-phosphine oxides. Control experiments suggest that the oxide anion in the nitrone motif is crucial for the enantio-control
Real-time AI-based computer-aided detection/diagnosis (AI-CAD) for breast ultrasound: A prospective, multicenter, multinational study (Poster presentation)
No full textBackground: To evaluate the effectiveness of a real-time artificial intelligence (AI)-based computer-aided detection/diagnosis (AI-CAD) system as a diagnostic decision support tool for breast ultrasound in a real-world clinical setting, conducted as a prospective, multicenter, and multinational study.Methods: From May to December 2024, total of 75 patients undergoing breast ultrasound were enrolled in prospective study conducted in Korea (n = 38) and Hong Kong (n = 37). In this study, six experts operated realtime AI-CAD system (CadAI-B, BeamWorks Inc., Korea) on tablet PC connected to handheld ultrasound device during breast ultrasound examinations. Image and clinical data were collected from patients with established ground truth through follow up, biopsy, or surgery. AI-CAD system highlights suspicious areas during scanning to assist physicians in breast cancer detection and supports data-driven diagnosis by providing BI-RADS categories and malignancy scores (0-100%) when the user freezes the image.AI-CAD. Diagnostic performance of experts and real-time AI-CAD system were evaluated using area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), sensitivity and specificity.Result: The analysis included 75 patients (mean age 55 years, IQR 46-66) with 24 malignancies (32.0%), 45 benign lesions (60.0%), and 6 normal cases (8.0%). Mean breast mass size was 1.2 cm ( ± 1.0 cm): benign 0.8 cm ( ± 0.7 cm), malignant 1.8 cm ( ± 1.3 cm). BI-RADS category distribution was: for experts category 1 (4.0%), 2 (21.3%), 3 (24.0%), 4a (16.0%), 4b (18.7%), 4c (4.0%), 5 (12.0%); and for AI-CAD category 1 (32.0%), 2 (5.3%), 3 (9.3%), 4a (17.3%), 4b (21.3%), 4c (13.3%), 5 (1.3%). Overall diagnostic performance of experts and AI-CAD, as AUCs calculated by BI-RADS, were 0.801 and 0.751, respectively (P= .679). Sensitivity and specificity were 91.7% (22/24) and 68.6% (35/51) in experts and 87.5% (21/24) and 57.8% (32/51) in AI-CAD, respectively (P= .481).Conclusions: In this real-world clinical setting, AI-CAD demonstrated promising performance comparable to that of experts.</p
Cosmetic satisfaction and decision regret in older Chinese breast cancer patients following breast conservation or mastectomy
No full textFew studies have looked into the best surgical treatment for older breast cancer patients, with many opting for a mastectomy for simplicity. The purpose of this study was to compare the cosmetic satisfaction and decision regret of older Chinese patients who had breast-conserving surgery (BCS) versus mastectomy. Female Chinese patients aged 70 or older when diagnosed with breast cancer were recruited between September 2019 and December 2021. The Chinese version of the BREAST-Q survey was used to assess satisfaction with breast cosmesis before and after surgery. The Decision Regret Scale was used to characterize decision regret six months after the operation. A comprehensive geriatric assessment was performed, as well as quality of life (QoL) measures. Eighty-six patients fulfilled the recruitment criteria, and 77 of them consented to the study and completed the questionnaires (90% participation rate). Fifty-three patients (68.8%) underwent a mastectomy, while twenty-four patients (31.2%) underwent BCS. At six months after the operation, patients who had a mastectomy were found to be less satisfied with the cosmetic outcome of their breasts (p = 0.012). Breast cosmesis satisfaction remained similar in the group of patients who received a BCS (p = 0.550). Neither group expressed regret in their choice of operation option (p = 0.429). Patients who received BCS had better social support (p = 0.025). There was no significant difference in QoL measures. The cosmetic outcome of a mastectomy can cause significant dissatisfaction in older adults. It is critical to engage patients in discussions about surgical options so that they can make an informed decision.Keywords: Breast cancer; cosmetic outcome; decision regret.</p
Development of Sensitivity to Prosodic Phrasal Boundaries in a Second Language
Get PDFThis study explores whether Cantonese-speaking learners of English can develop a native-like mechanism for identifying prosodic phrasal boundaries in English—an essential cue for syntactic processing that aligns with syntactic boundaries in English. Specifically, we investigate whether these second language (L2) speakers can acquire native-like sensitivity to phrasal stress, which appears to be the most reliable prosodic cue to mark phrasal boundaries in English (e.g., Truckenbrodt, 2006; Werner et al., 2022). Since Cantonese does not use phrasal stress as a boundary marker, it remains an open question whether Cantonese speakers can ultimately learn to use phrasal stress to recognize prosodic phrasal boundaries in English.To address this question, we measured the Closure Positive Shift (CPS)—an ERP component known to reflect sensitivity to prosodic phrasal boundaries (Steinhauer et al., 1999). The CPS has been shown to reflect boundary sensitivity not only in language comprehension, but also in contexts where only prosody is perceivable (and even during music listening), suggesting that CPS reflects a domain-general mechanism for perceptual chunking (e.g., Gilbert et al., 2015). We hypothesized that native English speakers would show CPS in response to phrasal stress cues in both English comprehension and prosody-only contexts. In contrast, we predicted that Cantonese speakers may show CPS only in the prosody-only context. Our rationale is that while Cantonese speakers are likely capable of using phrasal stress for general perceptual chunking, such as in music, they may struggle to apply it during linguistic comprehension, where additional processing demands, such as syntax and semantics, come into play. We further hypothesized that higher proficiency in English might mitigate this challenge.The study included native English speakers (n = 30), high-proficiency Cantonese learners of English (n = 30), and moderately proficient learners (n = 27). L2 proficiency was classified based on English scores from the Hong Kong college entrance exam, representing approximately the top 10% and top 10–30% of scores. Participants completed a two-session auditory sentence comprehension task on the same day while their EEG waveforms were recorded. In Session 1 (lexical condition), they heard sentences with or without phrasal stress, which was manipulated by changing the level of intensity using Praat. Phrasal stress was superimposed on the rightmost part of each major syntactic phrase as an 8 dB intensity boost. Each word in a sentence was generated individually using Amazon Polly, then combined and normalized for amplitude and length using Praat. As Table 1 shows, the noun in the critical region ended with the plural -s in the condition with phrasal stress, while it ended with the possessive -s in the condition without phrasal stress. This manipulation made the two types of sentences identical except for the presence of absence of phrasal stress up until the critical region. In Session 2 (muffled condition), they listened to unintelligible, muffled sentences derived by low-pass filtering the sentences from the first session at 800 Hz. This manipulation preserved phrasal stress patterns, while excluding two crucial components for language comprehension: syntax and semantics.As Figure 1 shows, our analysis revealed a significant increase in positivity in the With-Phrasal-Stress condition compared to the Without-Phrasal-Stress condition (i.e., CPS effects) across both lexical and muffled contexts for the L1 group (t(1796) = 7.79, p d = 0.37; t(1796) = 9.13, p d = 0.43) and the advanced L2 groups (t(1796) = 6.70, p d = 0.32; t(1796) = 4.76, p d = 0.22). In contrast, the less advanced L2 group exhibited a CPS effect in the muffled condition, t(1676) = 10.29, p d = 0.50, but not in the lexical condition, t(1676) = 2.33, p = .12, d = 0.11. These findings indicate that the less advanced L2 group has not yet developed native-like sensitivity to phrasal stress boundaries during language comprehension—a sensitivity observed in the L1 and high-proficiency L2 groups—although they are sensitive to phrasal stress boundaries in isolation. these findings suggest that Cantonese speakers face challenges incorporating sensitivity to phrasal stress boundaries into English sentence comprehension, likely due to the absence of this prosodic cue in Cantonese sentence processing. However, the results from the high-proficiency group indicate that this cross-linguistic difference can be overcome with increased L2 proficiency.published_or_final_versio
Hydrogen-bond catalysis in biomass valorization
No full textAs a biomimetic concept of enzymatic catalysis, hydrogen-bond catalysis (HBC) leverages H-bond-inducing atomic sites or functional groups in catalysts to regulate substrate binding and transition states so as to enable highly efficient and (stereo)selective organic reactions. However, it has rarely been employed in catalytic biomass valorization toward renewable fuels and value-added chemicals until recently. This perspective aims to highlight the opportunities offered by HBC to promote effective transformations of biomass-derived oxygenates. The concept and characterization approaches of HBC strategies are first introduced, followed by a critical overview of HBC-involved reactions, catalyst structures, and dynamic interfaces between biomass substrates and catalysts. Particular attention is paid to binding configurations and adsorption energetics for which engineered H-bonds can tune bond cleavage/formation and promote desirable reaction pathways in association with intrinsic catalytic sites (e.g., Lewis/Brønsted acid sites, metal active sites, and photogenerated charges) and therefore enable biomass valorization in more efficient and sustainable manners.</p
Investigating the role of top-down regulation and bottom-up cues in eating styles transitions: a one-year cohort study with young adults
No full textYoung adults often experience deterioration in eating habits during transition periods. However, longitudinal evidence on the changes of eating styles and associated determinants remains limited. This study aimed to explore the eating style transitions among young adults in their graduate transitions and investigate the influences of top-down regulatory factors and bottom-up environmental cues on their eating style transitions.This is a two-wave cohort study involving 594 Hong Kong young adults completing the baseline assessment during their post-secondary graduation year, of whom, 424 completed the one-year follow-up survey. Eating behaviours were measured at both points. Executive function (EF), coping style, exposure to digital food environments, responsiveness to food cues, perceived stress and demographics were also measured. Latent profile analysis was used to explore main eating styles among participants while multinomial logistic regression models were used to assess determinants of eating style transitions.In follow-up assessment, 5.9 % of participants were consistently approaching eaters (APE) across two time points, while 28.8 % have transitioned from moderate eaters (MOE) or APE to mixed eaters (MIE). The multinominal logistic regression model revealed that although EF and coping style were no longer significantly associated with participants' eating style transitions outcomes, greater exposure to digital food environments (OR = 2.60, p = 0.028) and higher responsiveness to food cues (OR = 5.86, p = 0.005) were associated with Persistent APE, while higher responsiveness to food cues (OR = 2.36, p = 0.009) and higher perceived stress (OR = 1.05, p = 0.046) were associated with Converted MIE.Bottom-up cues may dominate eating style transitions compared to top-down regulations. Future interventions should leverage environmental cues, thereby targeting the automatic decision-making process and supporting healthy eating habits during stressful life stages.</p